Grandmother’s fatal rabies only diagnosed when psychiatrist intervened, inquest hears
The Independent • • health
Key Points:
- Yvonne Ford, a 59-year-old grandmother, was diagnosed with rabies only after developing hallucinations and a psychiatrist's intervention, following a stray dog bite during a holiday in Morocco in February 2025.
- Ms. Ford did not seek medical treatment for the scratch at the time and developed neurological symptoms four months later, leading to hospital admission in Yorkshire.
- Psychiatrist Dr. Alexander Burns suspected rabies after learning about the dog bite, a detail initially unknown to the medical team, and confirmed the diagnosis through research.
- Ms. Ford was transferred to an infectious disease unit but died on 11 June 2025; experts noted rabies is 100% fatal once symptoms appear, though vaccination is highly effective if
