Five-hour wait for scan after Rams fan, 2, had stroke
A TWO-year-old boy had to wait over five hours for a scan after suffering a rare stroke, potentially triggered by chicken pox, which left him unable to speak.
Reuben Mather’s mother, Holly Mather, was bathing him at their home when she noticed he appeared to be in pain.
When one side of the toddler’s face began to droop - a classic sign of a severe brain injury - she immediately called 999.
The young Derby County fan then waited nearly an hour for an ambulance before being taken to Worcester Royal Hospital from his Bromsgrove home at 7.30pm, where he wasn’t seen until after 9pm.
Reuben’s father, Liam Mather, revealed that he pleaded with doctors to perform a CT scan, which they eventually did at midnight, confirming the parents’ fears. “He’s a healthy, normal two-yearold boy – it was completely out of the blue,” Liam said.
Just before the stroke, Reuben had been making a pained expression, before Holly, 33, noticed he was rubbing his eyes and the corner of his mouth had dropped.
“The 999 operators didn’t prioritise it, which is unbelievable,” Liam said. “Holly had to call them again to upgrade it. When they got to hospital, they said they thought it was unlikely he had suffered a stroke and they thought he would just get better on his own.”
In a harrowing ordeal, Liam recounted not being at home when his son demonstrated signs of distress but hurried to the hospital upon hearing the news.
On arriving and witnessing his child’s condition, he said: “As a father, I got there and Reuben didn’t even recognise me. I was telling doctors, ‘he needs a CT scan.’ It took me half an hour to convince them.”
After initial reluctance, Reuben received aspirin nearly eight hours after showing symptoms. The subsequent scans disclosed severe damage to the brain’s left side.
“The doctors we saw at Worcester had never seen a stroke in a child Reuben’s age before,” Liam added, highlighting the rare nature of this medical emergency in young children.
Liam also shared his thoughts on the healthcare system, acknowledging the NHS’s quality but stressing the strain on its resources: “As fantastic as the NHS are, unfortunately there are just too many people, and not enough resources. If you go to A and E, you’re just waiting in an ambulance.”
Reuben’s situation has seen some improvement since May. He is now in a specialised paediatric stroke unit in Birmingham Children’s Hospital, regaining speech gradually due to higher brain plasticity at his young age, although the right-side movement remains affected.
Strokes in children are rare, with only 400 cases annually in the UK and an even smaller fraction among those under five. Reuben’s stroke risk was heightened by recent chickenpox, a common precursor for paediatric strokes.
Parents Liam and Holly, who also have a six-year-old daughter, Ivy, have taken the initiative to set up a Gofundme page to support Reuben’s rehabilitation and care. The funds raised will be dedicated to speech therapy, as well as physiotherapy, and any necessary home adaptations.
Liam has also issued an important message to other parents, stressing the need for awareness about the potential risks of strokes in young children following chicken pox, which can lead to vasculitis a condition that involves inflammation of the blood vessels in the brain.
Dr Jules Walton, who co-leads the medical team at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust as chief medical officer, addressed concerns regarding patient care, stating: “Where concerns are raised about care received we will undertake a rapid review and investigate further where required. Due to patient confidentiality we are unable to comment further at this time.”
MUM CALLED 999 AFTER NOTICING CORNER OF REUBEN’S MOUTH HAD DROPPED