Paawan Purba, 20, died in a hospital in less than 48 hours of being diagnosed with Men W. With a rise in the number of deaths caused by the virus in England, Paawan had reportedly missed the Men ACWY vaccine which provides protection from four different types of Meningitis.
Calling upon health and education bosses to do more to raise awareness about the disease at universities, the pharmacology student's family wants the government to get all students vaccinated. "The sadness is beyond belief. I keep looking at the door thinking my beautiful, bubbly daughter will come home and we will all be together again. Our daughter is gone but if we can help raise awareness of what needs to be done to save others, then maybe we can prevent this from happening to another family," said her father Baldev Purba.
A GP said the deceased's high temperature, loss of appetite and aches and pains in her neck were likely to be caused by a virus and recommended paracetamol and advised her to drink fluids. Her mother Jasmeelsher said, "She was interested in pharmaceutical research. She talked about her dreams of helping cures for the most dangerous diseases. We are now raising money in her memory so we can help find a cure for meningitis." The family has found backing in local MP Seema Malhotra, who raised the issue in the Parliament. She called for a debate in the Autumn to discuss increasing awareness and the number of people being vaccinated against meningitis.
