Finding into death of Manpreet Kaur
Deceased
Manpreet Kaur
Demographics
24y, female
Date of death
2024-06-20
Finding date
2025-09-17
Cause of death
Pulmonary and miliary tuberculosis
AI-generated summary
Manpreet Kaur, a 24-year-old Indian national on a student visa, died of pulmonary and miliary tuberculosis on 20 June 2024 at Melbourne Airport. She had been symptomatic for months, presenting to a GP on 19 May 2024 with respiratory symptoms (chesty cough, sore throat, voice loss) which were diagnosed as viral upper respiratory infection without further investigation. She was severely unwell and emaciated (BMI 11.7) by the time she collapsed boarding an international flight. Critical clinical lessons: TB must be considered in persistent respiratory symptoms, particularly in migrants from high-prevalence countries; early imaging or microbiological investigation may have identified TB before critical deterioration. The case highlights that available free TB treatment in Australia was not accessed, suggesting barriers to healthcare awareness or access for non-residents and culturally diverse communities require urgent attention.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- Failure to investigate persistent respiratory symptoms adequately
- No imaging or microbiological testing despite concerning presentation
- Lack of awareness of free TB treatment services in Victoria
- Possible concerns about visa status affecting healthcare-seeking behaviour
- Inadequate outreach to non-residents and culturally linguistically diverse communities
- Deterioration over weeks not prompting family to seek emergency care
Coroner's recommendations
- All agencies connected with the Victorian Tuberculosis Program, including the Department of Health, should ensure that outreach to the Victorian public is as effective as practicable, particularly to persons who are non-residents or from culturally and linguistically diverse communities
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