Barnsley grandmother had 'incredibly rare' case of rabies after dog scratch in Morocco, inquest told
A grandmother who died from rabies four months after she was scratched by a stray dog in Morocco was only diagnosed after a psychiatrist was called in to assess her deteriorating symptoms, an inquest jury has been told.
Yvonne Ford, aged 59, was scratched after she startled the animal on a beach during a family holiday in February 2025. She did not seek treatment as it was so minor and she cleaned the wound with a wet wipe, a hearing in Sheffield heard on Tuesday.
An expert told a jury of nine women and two men how rabies is 100 per cent fatal once symptoms begin to show, but there have only been 26 cases in the UK since 1946.
The inquest heard how rabies was only diagnosed after Mrs Ford was referred to the mental health team at Barnsley Hospital in June 2025 and a psychiatrist asked her family about her travel history.
Psychiatrist Alexander Burns told the inquest how he was called to assess Mrs Ford, who was on the short stay ward at the hospital, because colleagues on that unit had been struggling to diagnose what was wrong with her and were concerned her symptoms - including hallucinations, disorientation and high levels of anxiety - could have had a mental health cause.
Dr Burns said he first asked about foreign travel because he suspected Lyme disease, which is caused by tick bites.
He said Mrs Ford's family told him she had recently been to Florida but had not been bitten.
Dr Burns said: "I was informed by her husband that, on February 10 2025, Yvonne was bitten by a stray dog on a beach in Morocco whilst on holiday.
"The bite had pierced her skin.
"The short stay unit medical team were not previously aware of that information."
Dr Burns said the family told him Mrs Ford had cleaned the wound from the dog with a wet wipe.
He told the inquest he became "concerned that the diagnosis may be rabies, in the context of the stray dog bite in Morocco and the various neurological symptoms".
The psychiatrist said he had never come across anyone with rabies before and said he did know all the symptoms so he decided to research it further.
He said: "It became clear that all of Yvonne's symptoms could be explained by that diagnosis."
The inquest heard how Mrs Ford was transferred to an infectious disease unit at Sheffield Royal Hallamshire Hospital where she died on June 11, 2025.
Infectious diseases expert Katharine Cartwright , from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, told the jury how rabies is a virus that is 100 per cent fatal once the symptoms begin to show.
But she said the vaccine is extremely effective and this has eliminated the virus from the UK.
Dr Cartwright said post-exposure administration of the vaccine can help in some circumstances before the symptoms begin.
She said there have only been 26 cases of rabies in the UK since 1946.
The inquest heard how Mrs Ford went to Barnsley Hospital on June 2, 2025, with a range of symptoms including severe headaches, nausea, mobility issues and disorientation and was being assessed on the short stay unit, where her condition deteriorated, then was seen by Dr Burns four days later.
Dr Cartwright was asked by Mrs Ford's family about the treatment she received at Barnsley Hospital in the time she was in the unit.
She said it appeared that Mrs Ford began to exhibit symptoms at the end of May and, therefore, there was nothing that could have been done at Barnsley Hospital that would have saved her.
She said the illness was "incredibly rare" and the collection of symptoms were "challenging" for the medics in Barnsley.
Dr Cartwright told the inquest: "I think the doctors did their best."
And she said: "It is so unusual and out with everyone's experience. It's not unreasonable for it (rabies) not to have been considered in the first few days."
The doctor said that, in 100 cases of rabies in America since 2000, half were only diagnosed post-mortem.
Assistant coroner Marilyn Whittle told the jury the inquest, which is due to last four days, will be considering visits Mrs Ford made to emergency departments in Barnsley and Wakefield , as well as to her GP, in March and April, when she was feeling unwell and complaining about insect bites.
But Dr Cartwright said these issues would not have been related to the rabies because, once symptoms emerge, death normally occurs within a couple of weeks.
She explained how rabies is passed on by dogs, foxes, bats and other infected mammals through saliva.
This can be through a scratch if a dog has licked its paw.
But she said there were no recorded cases of human-to-human transmission.
Dr Cartwright said symptoms typically begin within four weeks of exposure but it can be up to three months and, in some cases, it can take years.
She said hydrophobia - the fear of water - is one symptom which is peculiar to rabies.
The doctor told jurors that this appears to have manifested itself in Mrs Ford's case with her being unwilling to drink and spitting to get rid of the saliva in her mouth.
She said this presentation was mild compared with many documented cases in which patients are often violent towards family members when water is brought anywhere near to them.
Dr Cartwright said there are two types of rabies - encephalitic and flaccid - and Mrs Ford's case was unusual as she seemed to exhibit symptoms of both.