Line of Duty star Jason Watkins has urged parents to look for vital clues that their child might have sepsis after losing his own daughter to the condition. The 56-year-old actor and his wife Clara Francis lost their daughter Maude after having been turned away twice from A&E in 2011.
Doctors said she had a chest infection, but an inquest later found that Maude had died of sepsis, where the immune system attacks its own tissue. Jason, who also had son Gilbert with Clara after Maude died, also has two older boys Freddie and Pip from his first marriage to actress Caroline Harding, and he now campaigns for better awareness of recognising the signs of sepsis.
As part of that effort, the actor has taken part in a documentary about Maude which will be released later this year. He told The Mirror: "It is all about offering comfort and context to families suffering like ours, and for information on sepsis.
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"There’s a golden hour you have to jump on, you have to keep asking, ‘is it sepsis?’ If any symptoms are present, and you feel they are even if they aren’t – ask. Hopefully we can make a difference."
The actor said that he found visiting an A&E department as part of the filming difficult. He said: "A lot of the difficulties with sepsis diagnosis in children are sadly down to money.
"The skills and expertise are there in the NHS, it's funding it which is difficult. The Government needs to step up and place money where it's needed."
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