Kayleigh 999 protest goes to Number 10
Jean Murphy, mother of Kayleigh Macilwraith-Christie presents the petition at the door of Number 10
29 November 2006 islingtongazette
A TRAGIC teenager's mum has taken her fight to the top.
Campaigning Jean Murphy presented a petition with more than 15,000 signatures to 10 Downing Street on Friday. She also held a 50-strong demonstration in Whitehall in a bid to get Prime Minister Tony's Blair's attention.
Ms Murphy, 48, of the Market Estate off North Road, Holloway, launched her campaign in memory of daughter Kayleigh Macilwraith-Christie.
Kayleigh would have turned 16 on Friday. But the 15-year-old died on July 14 after a series of ambulance service errors meant she did not get hospital treatment until she had been having an epileptic fit for 45 minutes.
When an ambulance finally came, there were no paramedics on board. The crew of three emergency medical technicians did not have the qualifications to give Kayleigh vital muscle relaxant Diazepam, which could have saved her life.
An ambulance service investigation revealed a host of problems that night. The fast response car at first went to the wrong flat; a computer glitch meant there was a delay in dispatching an ambulance; Kayleigh's ambulance had to stop for an accident; the replacement ambulance had to be flagged down by Ms Murphy after going to the wrong estate; and control room staff had no way of knowing which ambulances had paramedics on board.
The ambulance service has since made changes. It has been decided that patients having a prolonged fit need a paramedic, while a new system will show what type of staff are on each vehicle. But Ms Murphy is calling for paramedics on board all London ambulances.
Speaking at the entrance to Downing Street, she said: "I am pleased so many people signed the petition and came along today. I'm hoping to improve the ambulance service. They should look at this petition and take it seriously."
Her partner Martin Nilan, 40, of Summerhill Road, Tottenham, added: "When you have a 15,000-strong petition, it shows there is a lot of concern for the issue. About 90 per cent of the people who signed didn't know that there weren't paramedics on all ambulances."
Ms Murphy is being supported in her campaign by the MP for Islington South and Finsbury, Emily Thornberry.
Ms Thornberry, who helped present the petition, said: "I have a child of 15. This could happen to anybody. This girl's death has got to make some sense.
"We have got to make sure we can improve things. Jean and I will see what we are going to do. We can ask questions of the Prime Minister and of the Secretary of State."
She said the Prime Minister would be writing to her about the petition and that she would forward a copy of his letter to the petition's signatories.
Ward councillor Barry Edwards, also at the demonstration, added: "In the same way that the death of Victoria Climbie led to the reorganisation of social services, this will lead to the reorganisation of the ambulance service and something good will come out of what's happened.
Jean Murphy, mother of Kayleigh Macilwraith-Christie presents the petition at the door of Number 10
29 November 2006 islingtongazette
A TRAGIC teenager's mum has taken her fight to the top.
Campaigning Jean Murphy presented a petition with more than 15,000 signatures to 10 Downing Street on Friday. She also held a 50-strong demonstration in Whitehall in a bid to get Prime Minister Tony's Blair's attention.
Ms Murphy, 48, of the Market Estate off North Road, Holloway, launched her campaign in memory of daughter Kayleigh Macilwraith-Christie.
Kayleigh would have turned 16 on Friday. But the 15-year-old died on July 14 after a series of ambulance service errors meant she did not get hospital treatment until she had been having an epileptic fit for 45 minutes.
When an ambulance finally came, there were no paramedics on board. The crew of three emergency medical technicians did not have the qualifications to give Kayleigh vital muscle relaxant Diazepam, which could have saved her life.
An ambulance service investigation revealed a host of problems that night. The fast response car at first went to the wrong flat; a computer glitch meant there was a delay in dispatching an ambulance; Kayleigh's ambulance had to stop for an accident; the replacement ambulance had to be flagged down by Ms Murphy after going to the wrong estate; and control room staff had no way of knowing which ambulances had paramedics on board.
The ambulance service has since made changes. It has been decided that patients having a prolonged fit need a paramedic, while a new system will show what type of staff are on each vehicle. But Ms Murphy is calling for paramedics on board all London ambulances.
Speaking at the entrance to Downing Street, she said: "I am pleased so many people signed the petition and came along today. I'm hoping to improve the ambulance service. They should look at this petition and take it seriously."
Her partner Martin Nilan, 40, of Summerhill Road, Tottenham, added: "When you have a 15,000-strong petition, it shows there is a lot of concern for the issue. About 90 per cent of the people who signed didn't know that there weren't paramedics on all ambulances."
Ms Murphy is being supported in her campaign by the MP for Islington South and Finsbury, Emily Thornberry.
Ms Thornberry, who helped present the petition, said: "I have a child of 15. This could happen to anybody. This girl's death has got to make some sense.
"We have got to make sure we can improve things. Jean and I will see what we are going to do. We can ask questions of the Prime Minister and of the Secretary of State."
She said the Prime Minister would be writing to her about the petition and that she would forward a copy of his letter to the petition's signatories.
Ward councillor Barry Edwards, also at the demonstration, added: "In the same way that the death of Victoria Climbie led to the reorganisation of social services, this will lead to the reorganisation of the ambulance service and something good will come out of what's happened.
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