Film warns students of meningitis danger
25.04.11
A JUNIOR doctor is hoping to save teenagers' lives following the death of a family friend from meningitis.
Dr Laura Vines, 24, has created a film warning young people and students about the deadly disease and urging them to register with a GP once at university.
A copy of the bilingual DVD is being sent to all schools and colleges in Wales. It is also available online.
Dr Vines, a doctor at the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend, was inspired to make the film after the death of her younger brother Alistair's friend Sundeep Watts.
Sundeep had just started a law degree at Oxford University when he died on his 19th birthday from meningitis three years ago.
Dr Vines, who was a third-year medical student at Cardiff University at the time of his death, said: "Sundeep was at the pub on the Friday night with a few friends having a drink when he started to complain of having a headache and said he wasn't feeling well.
"He went home early and wasn't really himself over the weekend. His housemate found him on Sunday night semiconscious.
"It was a really distressing time for everyone, but what hit home for me was that meningitis is really prevalent in people just starting out at university."
Read the full article in the Western Mail [external link] or watch Meningitis: Know The Signs online at www.publichealthwales.wales.nhs.uk
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