Serena Profitt, age 4, died last summer of E. coli poisoning. A bill introduced in the Oregon House, HB 3540, hopes to prevent similar tragedies.
Health authorities believe Serena and her friend, Brad Sutton, 5, both contracted E.coli infections from the same source, but they never identified it. Bradley was hospitalized and survived, but help for Serena came too late.
The children both became ill over Labor Day weekend last year experiencing bloody diarrhea. Serena’s family brought her to the hospital twice but she was sent home each time without being tested for E. coli. Serena’s symptoms persisted, so the Profitts brought her to a different hospital where she was admitted going into shock and kidney failure. She died two days later after suffering a stroke and a massive seizure.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. David Gomberg (D), would require practitioners to screen patients 18 and under who have experienced four or more days of unexplained diarrhea for E. coli. Rep. Gomberg introduced the bill at the request of Serena’s grandmother.
