Deliciously Ella’s Strep A scare after she spent night in A&E with her daughter

The woman behind the Deliciously Ella food blog and brand has revealed she spent the night in A&E with her daughter after a Strep A scare.

Ella Mills posted a photo on her Instagram story of her daughter’s legs, which appeared to have been taken while waiting to be seen by a doctor.

“A night in A&E with my gal,” she wrote. “And the absolute angels that are NHS doctors and nurses”, the caption read.

“Seven hours there and they were consistently kind, patient and helpful, despite being extraordinarily busy. She had some strep signs and a rash, but home now ok antibiotics.”

Ella Mills, husband Matthew, and daughters Skye and May (Clare Winfield/PA)

Have you been affected by Strep A? If so email zoe.tidman@independent.co.uk

With two young daughters, three-year-old Skye and two-year-old May, Ms Mills did not detail which had been taken into hospital.

Her experience comes after mother and blogger Melissa Mead advised parents to trust their instincts if their children fell ill.

Ms Mead’s one-year-old son William died in 2014 after weeks of a lingering cough and concerns she said were dismissed by doctors.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says the current number of scarlet fever cases remains higher than would typically be expected at this time of year. In week 46 of 2022, some 851 cases were reported compared with an average of 186 in the preceding years.

Mother Melissa Mead has told parents to ‘trust their instincts’ over Strep A infections after her baby was struck down (Supplied)

The country-wide death toll currently stands at nine, after a number of children lost their lives to the infection.

Scarlet fever is just one of the illnesses – alongside Strep throat and impetigo - caused by a species of bacteria called Group A Streptococcus. The majority of cases are mild, but when serious the bacteria can develop into invasive Strep A (iGAS).

Two children have been admitted to hospital following a scarlet fever outbreak at Brynaman Primary School in Carmarthenshire, and 24 children in total have been diagnosed.

Councillor Glynog Davies, cabinet member for education and Welsh language, has urged schools in the area to notify the health protection team if it experiences two or more cases in the same setting within a 10-day period.