A mum whose daughter died from a strain of meningitis hours after complaining of ‘the worst headache’ has called for teen vaccinations. Alison Goude, 48, urged the NHS to offer jabs to protect youths from meningococcal type B meningitis following Livia Wilson’s tragic death from the disease.
The 19-year-old waitress went to bed one evening complaining of a headache after returning home from the Parklife music festival in Manchester. But tragically, Alison said “beautiful” Livia never woke up.
Tests later revealed she passed away after contracting the bacterial illness – which causes sudden inflammation of the tissue around the brain and spinal cord. Vaccines that guard against meningococcal type B meningitis, also known as MenB, are given to babies up to the age of one in three separate doses.
But Alison has urged the government to also roll them out to teens, who currently only receive MenACWY, covering other strains, at the age of 13 or 14. She said: “To know there is this vaccination out there, it hurts. You beat yourself up, like what could I have done to protect her?
“To think she would still be here if we had made ourselves aware and vaccinated her. They can find the money for other vaccinations, and I don’t get how many deaths they want of children that age before it becomes cost-effective for them. I just don’t understand it… It’s like they’re saying they’re not worth it. Why can it not just be included with that rollout at 13, 14?”
Livia, from York, who worked at the Italian restaurant Lucia’s and had trained as a ballet dancer, was excited to attend the Parklife music festival in June 2022. But a few days after returning from the weekend event, she complained of a headache.
Alison, an assistant accountant, said she just thought Livia had “overdone it”. However, the evening of June 15 would sadly be the final time she would see her daughter alive. Alison said: “She came back after the weekend, and she was straight back into work. She was working usual restaurant hours until late at night.
“She’d got herself to work, she’d drove. But she was sent home that day as she felt unwell. And for me, I think if I can get myself to work, I’m not that bad. So I just thought, ‘She just needs to really recover.’
“She did say it was the ‘worst headache’ she’d ever had but she would do a Covid test in the morning because she felt generally unwell. She had paracetamol, went to bed, and that was it. [The next day] an ambulance came and then the police came because they treat it as suspicious because there’s no explanation.”
Meningitis is usually transmitted to an individual via the mucus or saliva from a person who is carrying the virus but has no symptoms. This can come, for example, from sharing drinks, food, utensils or toothbrushes. Heartbroken Alison said it was extremely tough to learn how her sociable daughter who “loved life” had passed away so suddenly.
She went on: “It took a long time to find out what caused it, and we asked, ‘Was she suffering, was she in pain?’ and they tried to explain that it’s just so fast with the brain. It just shuts your main organs down… She was alone. You just didn’t ever expect it.”
Alison is now urging parents to consider getting their children vaccinated against meningococcal type B meningitis, even though it can cost £220 if done privately. She felt it was particularly important for teens who may be at more risk of contracting the disease due to their close contact at places like festivals.
She said: “Just please get it, protect them and don’t be in the position that we are. We just don’t want anybody to have to go through what we are. And we have to try and carry on. Your life is never the same.
“If I couldn’t afford it, I’d give up anything to be able to protect my child. And I don’t think it’s out there that vaccination is there and the children haven’t got it at 15. People think they’ve had it, but it’s a different strain of meningitis.”
Dr Andrew Lee, Regional Deputy Director of The UK Health Security Agency, Yorkshire & the Humber, said his thoughts were with Livia’s family. However, he said the government was not currently considering rolling out a MenB vaccine for teens.
He said: “MenB is a rare, but terrible disease and this is yet another devastating reminder of how serious it can be. Our thoughts are with Livia Wilson’s family. Based on expert advice from the independent Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), Government decide which groups are eligible for free NHS vaccines.
“National surveillance data shows a much higher incidence of group B meningococcal disease in infants compared to teenagers. Unlike the Men ACWY vaccine, MenB vaccine has been shown to have no effect on carriage and will therefore, not provide population (herd) protection.
“As with all vaccine programmes, the JCVI will keep the programme under constant review. Early recognition of meningitis and septicaemia symptoms, which can include a fever, headache, rapid breathing, drowsiness, shivering, vomiting and cold hands and feet, can greatly improve the outcome of the disease and so anyone concerned about any of these symptoms, at any time, should contact their GP immediately or call NHS 111.”
Brian Davies, Head of Health Insights and Policy at Meningitis Research Foundation, said: “Meningococcal Group B infection has, for decades, been the largest cause of life-threatening meningitis in the UK. Introducing a vaccine for babies in 2015 was a major step forward but teenagers are a high-risk age group too and we would like to see this age group protected.
“Alongside this, it’s also important to know that meningitis vaccines offer protection against the different types of bacteria that cause meningitis but that there is currently no one single vaccine that protects against them all.
“That is why it’s also vital to be aware of the symptoms of meningitis, so you can spot these and know when to seek urgent medical attention.”