A woman’s family is distressed after she was advised by a 111 operator to take a paracetamol when she shared worrying symptoms that later turned out to be meningitis, leaving her in a coma.
Nicky Hillier, aged 50, initially thought she was just coming down with a bad cold one Friday night in early March 2026 and decided to stay home to prevent spreading any potential illness. As her condition worsened over the next five days, she called in sick to work, suspecting she might have Covid.
Her symptoms escalated to the point where she had to change her pajamas every two hours due to excessive sweating. On March 18, after struggling to secure a GP appointment and enduring days of fever, NHS 111 allegedly advised her to take paracetamol to alleviate her symptoms. However, a few hours later, she was discovered unconscious and barely breathing by her neighbor and ex-husband.
On March 19, when Nicky’s neighbor noticed her closed curtains, she and Nicky’s ex-husband entered her home only to find her unconscious on the floor.
Subsequently, Nicky, a resident of Swindon, Wiltshire, was rushed to the hospital where doctors diagnosed her with bacterial meningitis. To support her recovery as she now faces deafness, mobility challenges, and an inability to work, Nicky’s friends and family have launched a GoFundMe campaign.
Amanda Hall, Nicky’s sister, expressed the shock and anguish of witnessing her loved one in such a dire state. She recounted the events leading up to Nicky’s hospitalization, emphasizing that despite Nicky’s distressing symptoms and plea for help to 111, she was advised to take paracetamol and subsequently found unconscious the following morning.
Doctors identified the bacteria causing Nicky’s meningitis as streptococcus pneumoniae, which had traveled from her spinal cord to her brain, triggering the illness. Although Nicky emerged from a two-day coma on March 21, she now faces challenges such as deafness, Bell’s palsy, and difficulties with mobility and communication.
Amanda shared Nicky’s current struggles, highlighting her sister’s determination to maintain a sense of normalcy by focusing on her appearance despite her limited mobility and confinement to her bedroom.
The family’s frustration with the initial advice from NHS 111 was evident, prompting a spokesperson for Practice Plus Group to encourage them to address their concerns directly to facilitate a review of the call in accordance with quality governance procedures.
