My daughter had sepsis age 4 months, a thermometer and identification of this tiny non blanching spot got her rapid treatment. 48 hours in hospital on IV antibiotics and she was back smiling and babbling as normal again (thanks Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust!)

This week a first time mum with a 2 week old baby with no access to public funds got in touch with our baby bank at Little Green Sock Project to see if we had any thermometers.

We didn’t. 

As a nurse and a mum, an immediate red flag flew up in my brain. We absolutely should be providing these.

Let me tell you why. 

🚩There are clear links between deprivation, ethnicity and childhood mortality. 
🚩in the UK, a black child is 3 times more likely to die in childhood than a white child. 

A thermometer is a simple diagnostic tool in identifying if a child has a high/low temperature, and an indicator for a parent whether they need to seek help or not. 

Sepsis kills around 150 children annually, and early intervention (within an hour) is vital for a good treatment outcome. 

Darker skin tones make sepsis more difficult to identify, as the rash will look different/masked, and flushing is not as obvious. This is why knowing the actual temperature is key. 

🚩This is how material deprivation and poverty widens health inequalities. Some families can’t afford to buy baby milk, it’s unlikely they have a thermometer. 

It could be the difference of a parent seeking help with clear information ‘My baby has a temperature of 40.8c’ rather than ‘my baby feels hot’ - even more difficult to communicate with language barriers. In darker skin tones flushed skin and rashes are harder to identify. 

As a baby bank we are ideally placed to address this inequality. We have an established network, we know the families.

We now provide a thermometer for every family referred to us for support with a newborn starter kit or older child (if they don’t already have one), alongside an information leaflet by the UK Sepsis Trust - all thanks to our supporters donations. 

HOWEVER we want to go further than that. We want to campaign for every first time parent in the UK facing hardship to be provided with a free thermometer and information on when and how to seek help before their baby is born. To empower them with the tools and knowledge to identify when their child is unwell and to seek help at the earliest possible stage. 

This will improve outcomes

This will save lives