Coroner calls for change after 'tragic' death of DJ from meningitis
25 year old Alex Theodossiadis died in January 2020 just weeks after celebrating Christmas with his family
Last updated 6th Dec 2021
A coroner is to write to healthcare leaders and the government calling for change after the death of a popular DJ from meningitis.
25 year old Alex Theodossiadis, who performed under the name Alex T, died on January 28 2020 at St James' University Hospital in Leeds.
He'd suffered many of the common symptoms of meningitis, including headaches, nausea, sensitivity to light and a lack of appetite but these weren't picked up by his GP surgery.
After ending up in A&E doctors were unsure of the process to follow to treat a patient with the rare condition.
Alex also suffered head injuries when he fell from his bed on a ward, as doctors weren't told he was confused and needed constant monitoring.
At the conclusion of an inquest at Wakefield Coroners' Court, Senior Coroner Kevin McLoughlin recorded a narrative verdict.
He pledged to write to authorities, including Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the Secretary of State for Health and the Royal College of General Practitioners with advice that could prevent future deaths.
Who was Alex T?
Originally from Hale in Manchester, Alex Theodossiadis was a respected figure in the Leeds electronic music community. He was better known for performing under the name Alex T.
He was best known for championing up and coming artists through a residency at Rinse FM, as well as his job at Leeds-based Tribe Records.
His mum, Sue Theodossiadis, described him as a "fit and healthy 25 year old" who was "sporty, tall, slim" and who represented his school in cross country.
Just weeks before his death he'd celebrated Christmas with his family, before welcoming in the new year with friends in London.
He'd recently performed at the Dimensions Festival in Croatia and had a tour in North America planned for spring 2020.
"The worst headache of all time"
Alex first became ill in early January 2020. He told his mum, in a text, that his ear had been blocked for several days; something which had been affecting his job as a DJ.
He thought he had tonsillitis and a case of the flu, which had also affected his flatmate. Text messages to friends and his parents revealed that by January 18 he had developed a 'horrendous cough' and a tight chest. He was also struggling to eat.
On Monday January 20 he called his GP and was offered an appointment three weeks later - on February 10.
The receptionist at the GP practice didn't ask him about the nature of his condition and he didn't talk about symptoms during the phone call.
On the same day he texted family and friends complaining of "the worst headache of all time, since 3am".
His condition deteriorated between Monday 20 and Friday 24, when Alex went to the Shakespeare Walk-In Centre.
Here he was diagnosed with a "viral upper respiratory tract infection" and prescribed medication.
Alex was advised to call 999 or go to A&E if his condition worsened, with a nurse mentioning several common meningitis symptoms. The coroner said "this reinforced the conclusion that meningitis was on her radar at that time".
On the same day he sent a text message to his mum telling her he was "still incredibly ill". At midnight he told a friend he'd had to cancel a DJ set, writing "I can barely stand up without getting a blinding headache".
Alex's flatmate saw him the following morning and realised he'd become worse, as it appeared he was too weak to get upstairs to his bed.
He was vomiting and had to be helped into a change of clothes.
Two hospitals
By 1pm Alex had been taken to A&E at Leeds General Infirmary.
A nurse identified suspected bacterial meningitis and he was given intravenous antibiotics and steroids.
By this point Alex was confused and had repeatedly tried to get out of bed, leaving him at risk of falling.
The coroner found there wasn't a clear course of action for doctors to take to deal with patients with meningitis symptoms.
In his conclusion, he wrote "there is a need for a plan to progress patients in this category urgently and provide clear instructions for what is to be done... against this ideal, Alex's pathway looks to have been hesitant and poorly signposted."
10 hours after arriving at the LGI, Alex was transferred to St James's University Hospital. In a move the coroner called 'astonishing', Alex was taken in an ambulance without a nurse escort.
The ambulance crew were given 'meagre information' and there was 'no evidence' of a handover which would have let medics at St James's know Alex was at risk of falling from his bed.
Unaware of the hazard, nurses on ward J27 left Alex in a side room, as was standard procedure with patients with possibly infectious conditions like meningitis.
He was only in the room for 10 minutes when a nurse heard him fall and observed him attempting to get up, before falling again and hitting his head.
He was subsequently transferred to intensive care but did not recover.
With the agreement of his family life support was withdrawn. Alex died on January 28, at approximately 16:10pm.
In his conclusion, the coroner wrote the fall made 'more than a minimal contribution to his death', calling it a 'tipping point'.
However, he also accepted the assessment of doctors that the meningitis infection would likely have been fatal in any event.
"Alex's death has not gone unnoticed"
At the conclusion of the inquest, Coroner Kevin McLoughlin did not blame one individual for Alex's death, finding that "all were endeavouring to help Alex".
However, he found that "the systems in place.... proved not to be efficient in responding to (Alex's) needs".
He has issued two separate reports to health authorities which could serve to prevent future deaths.
He has written to Alex's GP practice and the Royal College of General Practitioners with advice for staff to be aware of possible signs of meningitis, which could assist with a diagnosis at an earlier stage.
He has also sent a report to Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust raising concerns around the patient transfer and handover process which left staff at St James's with few details of Alex's condition.
The report also raises concerns about the 'absence of clear leadership' on methods of diagnosing meningitis, the lack of a 'clear pathway' for treatment and the timescale in which people with suspected meningitis should be treated.
Both reports will also be sent to the Secretary of State for Health Sajid Javid.
Mr McLoughlin concluded "Alex's death has not gone unnoticed and may provide a foundation for all of us to learn".
Alex's mum, Sue Theodossiadis said: "There were some positive things that came from the inquest.
"The coroner acknowledged that there were areas both in primary care, before people make it to hospital that could be improved... as well as specific things in hospital, within A&E and around transferring someone to a ward."
"We were pleased the coroner was actively going out to try to make something good happen from Alex's death"
Sue is now calling for better training for staff at GP practices, who may be the first to identify possible signs of meningitis in young people:
"We were presented with some training materials about meningitis and around red flag symptoms."
"They focused very much on the very young and the very old and on people who were showing all of the classic signs of meningitis."
"In reality the symptoms can appear in a different order, they don't all have to appear at once."
"You don't need all those symptoms to have a really serious illness."
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has issued an apology to the family.
You can find more information about the signs and symptoms of meningitis here.