A TEENAGE girl dying from meningitis begged and pleaded with nurses to give her antibiotics, an inquest heard.

But Melissa Watmough, 17, had to wait nearly three hours for the drugs after arriving by emergency ambulance to the Manchester Royal Infirmary.

There was then a delay of almost two hours before she was seen by a doctor and then another hour before she was administered the antibiotics she hoped would save her life.

Melissa's mum Joanne told the inquest: "I might as well have let her stay at home and die quietly. In our view the hospital did not treat her quickly enough.

"We believe that if she would have received the appropriate antibiotic treatment earlier in the process she would still be here today. Meningitis is a deadly disease. All the guidance suggests that time is of the essence.

"Melissa was becoming very scared and concerned about her health and begged the nurse to give her antibiotics."

Her family are now considering legal action over her treatment.

Carolyn Singleton, Manchester assistant deputy coroner, ruled Melissa died from natural causes. She urged the hospital to discuss the case with her family and said: "Clearly they believe that had antibiotics been administered when she arrived at hospital, she may have had a fighting chance."

Sue Davie, Chief Executive of the Meningitis Trust, said: "Bacterial meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia are medical emergencies and need immediate treatment with antibiotics, together with admission to hospital. Early treatment with antibiotics can have a significant impact on the outcome of bacterial meningitis."

The inquest heard that Melissa, a hairdressing student at Mancat College, was rushed from her home in Abbey Hey, Gorton, to hospital by ambulance after showing all the classic symptoms of meningitis.

She died three days later on the day before Christmas Eve last year. Her family are now considering legal action over her treatment.

An inquest heard Melissa woke up feeling unwell on December 20 and later complained of headache, sickness and a high temperature. A rash also developed on her legs.

Her mother Joanne, 40, carried out the 'glass test' advised by the Meningitis Trust and the rash did not disappear. She telephoned an out-of-hours medical advice service and suspected meningitis was diagnosed.

The inquest heard that the advice pointed to three 'red flag' signs, meaning Melissa was displaying three recognisable symptoms of meningitis. An ambulance was sent to pick her up immediately and Melissa was taken as an emergency patient to the MRI.

The inquest heard that she arrived at the hospital at 7.16pm but nurses downgraded her condition after an initial examination and it was 9pm before she was seen by a doctor.

The doctor said he wished to take a blood sample before antibiotics were administered and it was only when her condition worsened that she was given antibiotics at around 10pm. She was transferred to Hope Hospital in Salford and placed on a life support machine but died on December 23.

John Bachelor, a consultant in emergency medicine at the MRI, told the hearing at Manchester Coroner's Court: "She did present with non-specific symptoms and went down hill very rapidly and developed severe complications of the disease.

"It can be very difficult to distinguish between other viral infections."

He said it was 'not common practice' to 'blindly' give antibiotics until patients were thoroughly examined and blood tests taken.

Dr Bachelor said: "It would not have made any difference to the outcome if she would have been given antibiotics on arrival."

A spokesman for Central Manchester University Hospital's NHS Foundation Trust said: "The Trust would like to extend its sincere condolences to Melissa Watmough's family. We are aware that the family still have concerns after the inquest and we would encourage them to contact the Trust to discuss this further."