Mum of two could be Newcastle’s first Covid-19 fatality

Mother of two, Lynsey Forbes, passed away within hours of seeking medical advice for a persistent sore throat and slight difficulty breathing.

The 36-year old was physically fit, having completed the 109km Cape Town Cycle Tour last month, had no underlying conditions, and, aside from a grocery run or two for essential items to a nearby supermarket, remained indoors during the lockdown.

Despite everything medical specialists did to try and save her, she died yesterday, a day after being admitted to MediClinic Hospital for respiratory illness. Health care workers are shaken by the speed at which her condition deteriorated, and devastated by the unanticipated loss of someone whose age and general good health should have worked in her favour.

Clinical evidence and medical observations of Lynsey’s symptoms, as well as the manner in which her illness progressed, point to Covid-19 infection. However, Lynsey and her husband, Norman, both tested negative for the coronavirus after being swabbed, and enquiries made to MediClinic itself, revealed that there is no record of a patient with confirmed coronavirus being admitted to hospital over the weekend.

District mayor and head of Amajuba’s Coronavirus Response Team, Dr Musa Ngubane, says he has not ruled out the possibility of a ‘false negative’ in Lynsey’s situation. “I have been to the hospital and to the laboratory. I have spoken to the health care workers involved in this patient’s medical care, and even to the woman who took the specimen which was tested for the coronavirus. They all agree that, clinically, the symptoms are indicative of Covid-19.  Everything that happened follows the course coronavirus would have taken. There may be a laboratory error, so a second specimen was sent for testing and we are now waiting for the results,” he explained.

“While the secretions will be tested for coronavirus, we will also be testing for a range of other illnesses to conclusively determine exactly what it is that led to her become fatally ill.”

Kirsten Wade, a close family friend of the Forbes, told the Newcastle Advertiser that Norman is unable to comment, as he is still coming to terms with his loss. “They are investigating what happened as nobody knows, at this stage, how Lynsey passed away. All Norman knows, is that both his and Lynsey’s tests for the coronavirus came back negative,” said Kirsten. Norman is currently self-isolating at home.

ALSO READ: Covid-19 status update for Amajuba District

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) advises that a negative test result does not necessarily exclude COVID-19, for a number of reasons.  “You should therefore complete your period of home quarantine as you have potentially been exposed to the infection,” urges the NICD on its official website.

According to international news reports, conventional diagnostic tests for the coronavirus produce a ‘false negative’ 30% of the time, with health experts expressing concern that a large number of patients are testing negative despite exhibiting symptoms.

An academic article compiled for TheConversation.com by clinical researcher, Jessica Watson, and professor in clinical epidemiology, Penny Whiting, explains that factors which affect accuracy include the timing of the test, how the swab was taken, and the handling of the specimen.

“If you have fewer symptoms and test negative, you can be more assured you don’t actually have Covid-19. But if you have typical symptoms of coronavirus, then it’s safest to assume that you have the disease, even if your test is negative,” they advise.

Dr Ngubane confirmed that, because of her symptoms, Lynsey was treated as a person under suspicion of coronavirus from the start. “The patient reported a bit of a sore throat, but the doctor who examined her was confident she would be okay. When she arrived at the hospital she was still in good spirits and even joked with the doctor. After the doctor assessed her symptoms, she was immediately isolated. The staff, who attended to her, were clad from head to toe in the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE). The patient was first put on a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine to assist her to breathe, but as her condition deteriorated, she eventually needed to be intubated,” said Dr Ngubane, relating what he learned from his interaction with medical staff.

ALSO READ: Door-to-door Covid-19 screenings begin in Newcastle

He continued, “I am confident that the doctor who cared for her did everything he could to try and save her life. He is devastated. Health care workers anticipated that we would lose lives to Covid-19, and were prepared to deal with the loss of elderly patients and patients with pre-existing conditions. They were not emotionally prepared to deal with the loss of a young, fit woman, a mother of two, a person who just came in to report a sore throat… Especially when every intervention, every resource was there to help her. The doctors are specialists, the ventilators were ready, the best available treatment was provided, and they still couldn’t save her.”

“In this situation, our healthcare workers are helpless. Combatting Covid-19 lies in the hands of the community. It concerns me that there are people out there who still don’t think this disease exists, people who are not taking this seriously, people who are destroying schools that are there to educate our doctors of tomorrow, people who are loading vehicles and queuing at supermarkets who don’t realise this disease is a killer. Please, only you can stop this. Your actions are the only things that will save citizens, that will save our country,” pleaded Dr Ngubane.

“I would like to send my deepest condolences to the patient’s husband and her two children. Your wife is a fallen hero, who will be remembered when the history of how we fought this virus is told. We know she did what she could to avoid being infected. I hope your memories of her will help you heal from this. You are not alone. The district, the province, the country is with you. You have our thoughts and our prayers,” concluded Dr Ngubane.

36 Newcastle residents with signs of respiratory illness were admitted to MediClinic as persons under suspicion of Covid-19 since the start of the lockdown. 3 033 residents in the Amajuba District have been screened for coronavirus since the Health Department began its door-to-door campaign, 13 of whom have been tested for possible covid-19 infection and are currently awaiting their results.

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