A devastated dad took his daughter to A&E three times before she was admitted to the ICU where she later died of Strep A.
Stella-Lilly McCorkindale, five, is the ninth child to die from the infection in the UK as an outbreak has left parents worried for their children. Strep A bacteria can cause many different infections, ranging from minor illnesses to serious and deadly diseases.
They include the skin infection impetigo, scarlet fever and strep throat.
READ MORE: Mum's warning as her two children catch Strep A
While the vast majority of infections are relatively mild, sometimes the bacteria cause serious and life-threatening invasive Group A Streptococcal disease. This occurs when the bacteria has invaded parts of the body such as the blood, deep muscle or lungs.
Robert McCorkindale, from Belfast, told the Mirror his "amazing" daughter started feeling unwell on the weekend of November 26 with a cold and temperature. He said he brought her to the hospital three times in three days before she was admitted, but by then it was too late. Stella-Lilly tragically died on Tuesday (December 6).
A review is being conducted into Stella-Lilly's care and the hospital has offered to meet with her family. Mr McCorkindale said: "I think she would have had two extra days of fighting. They should have tested her for Strep A on the Monday [November 28], by the time they induced her Stella had given up."
He has paid tribute to his daughter saying she was "kind and caring and thoughtful". Mr McCorkindale said: "She was a great child, parents came up to me all the time saying they wished their children were like Stella-Lilly. Everyone that met her loved her.
"She is amazing. She didn't like it when children played alone and when she is around she was with them. She is so kind and caring and thoughtful. "She doesn't have any brothers or sisters so she treated all of her friends as such."
When he first took Stella-Lilly to Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children she was too ill to walk. Mr McCorkindale said he was told by doctors she was dehydrated.
He said: "They put a wooden stick on her tongue and said it was viral and said she just needed to be hydrated with Lucozade. In less than five minutes I was convinced I was an overbearing father and I felt bad for bringing my child there."
Mr McCorkindale, who is not in a relationship with Stella-Lilly's mother, said his daughter went to her mum's house after their first hospital trip. The next day she felt worse and they took her in a second time, where he says a doctor helped with hydration but said she was still unwell and they went back home
By November 30, Stella-Lilly's condition had severely deteriorated. Her father said: "By 5pm on Wednesday Stella had said 'mummy, I feel like I'm dying'. and so we took her back. I shouted at them that we were not going anywhere until we saw a doctor.
"In 15 minutes, this doctor ordered tests and found she had a chest infection and they said 'we think this is toxic shock now'. They weren't 100% sure it was Strep A, and they feared it was sepsis too because the blood was infected. The blood culture came back for a Strep A a few hours later."
Mr McCorkindale said that once his daughter was admitted staff went "above and beyond for her". Stella-Lilly also died for five minutes while battling the infection.
He said: "All the doctors on the ICU ward did everything for her, they bent over backwards and treated her like a princess. She was a wee bit delirious but she still had her sass when she corrected doctors to say her name is 'Stella-Lilly' not 'Stella'."
"By 3am Thursday, her whole body shut down and she died for five minutes and they brought her back. They had to keep her in an induced coma to get antibiotics in her."
He added: "They did everything they could and it just got worse. A couple of days later they were going to have to amputate her wee legs and we thought 'okay as long as we can get her out of here'.
"Her pupils changed and they did a CT scan and found she was brain damaged and we thought 'okay let's try and wake her up'. "And on the Monday it was time to go sleep and they took her off everything."
A spokesman for Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children told the Mirror: "We send our deepest condolences to the McCorkindale family following the passing of Stella-Lilly.
"Every aspect of the care Stella-Lilly received is being carefully reviewed. The death of a child is a heart-breaking event for family and friends and in such tragic circumstances we give the family space to grieve.
"Hospital management will be available to meet Stella-Lilly's family at a time that suits them. Our thoughts are with them at this incredibly sad time."
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
READ NEXT:
What is Strep A and what should you do if you think your child has it
Mum's advice after mistaking Strep A for common childhood infection
Alder Hey records 'highest ever' A&E admissions over Strep A fears
Red flag Strep A symptom that means your child needs to be seen by a doctor
Strep A: antibiotics could be given out in schools to stop illness
