The life-changing reality of sepsis and the vital importance of spotting signs and raising the alarm early has featured on BBC Look North today (Wednesday 21st October).
Sheffield mum-of-two Alex Plank, 41, developed sepsis three years ago and her family were told she would likely not survive.
She's shared her story to make others aware of the life-changing condition, which develops when the body has an extreme reaction to an infection.
Treatment for sepsis needs to be given in hospital within an hour to reduce the chances of the body's immune system going into overdrive. This can lead to septic shock, multi-organ failure and death.
Dr Foster, a consultant in infectious disease here at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, was also interviewed for the piece.
For Alex, who had been at home looking after her youngest daughter at home in Greenhill in May 2023, the first signs of her illness seemed like a "nasty cold".
But when her husband returned home, he found her seriously unwell and struggling to breathe, with blue lips and grey fingers. He called NHS 111 and she was rushed to A&E.
Within minutes of arriving at A&E, she collapsed and went into cardiac arrest.
After this she remembers nothing, except waking up two weeks later in critical care, where she would spend a total of six weeks before moving to the infectious diseases ward where she spent a further six weeks. She also had to have her right leg amputated below the knee and lost the toes on her left foot and some of her fingers.
Following discharge, she has worked hard to rebuild her life, undertaking physiotherapy and strength training.
Incredibly, in September 2025, she took part in the Sheffield 10k. She has also retrained as a teaching assistant.
'Delay by an hour could have cost Alex her life'
|Dr Foster said that it is important to spot signs of sepsis, external in patients where it might not be as obvious
Speaking to the BBC Dr Foster, who also treated Alex said:
"For Alex, thankfully, her wonderful husband noticed that she really looked unwell, rapidly called the alarm, got an ambulance, and brought her to A&E.
"If he had delayed those actions even for another hour, she may not be here today."
However, Dr Foster emphasises that it is important to spot signs of sepsis, external in patients where it might not be as obvious.
"It's so important that we remain vigilant," she says.
"The subtle things being: is somebody falling? Are they confused? Are they breathing fast? Are they not themselves? Are they profoundly weak?"
Symptoms of sepsis in adults to watch for include slurred speech or confusion, extreme shivering or muscle pain/fever, severe breathlessness, passing no urine or all day, or very little in the past 18 hours, and mottled or discoloured skin.
Over the last month, teams across the Trust have been running a 'Spot It. Say It. Start the Clock' campaign to improve awareness that sepsis is a medical emergency, with successful events including educational sepsis trolleys and a poster competition.
