The mother of a Ballarat woman who died after severe vomiting and a fever wonders if she would still be alive if paramedics had taken her to hospital.
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Ballarat woman Stacey Yean, 23, died in January last year after a severe bout of vomiting that had her family and friends so concerned that they called for an ambulance twice, an inquest into her death has heard.
On the first triple-zero call, her mother Adrienne said she was told by the operator that her daughter most likely had a bug and an ambulance would not attend.
Paramedics were sent after the second call but didn't take Ms Yean to hospital as they said she likely had a 24-48 hour bug that she would have to "ride out", the court heard.
Paramedics also allegedly said that if she was taken to hospital she would have a long wait in emergency "with a bucket for five to six hours" and they didn't want her to go through that.
The family said that after the paramedics left they were satisfied that Stacey only had a bug and would need to rest and keep her fluids up.
Stacey went to bed and the next morning her mother found her dead, the inquest at the Victorian Coroner's Court heard on Wednesday.
Forensic pathologist Victoria Francis told the court an exact cause of death could not be determined.
Adrienne Yean says Ambulance Victoria failed her daughter.
"We believe something in the system needs to change. The ambulance did no more for her that we could," Mrs Yean said in her statement to the court on Wednesday.
"The system has failed us and failed Stacey, but if she had not been talked out of going to hospital she might still be with us today."
The inquest continues for three days.
- AAP
