The former colleagues of a dental nurse who died suddenly and without explanation say the void she has left will never be filled.
Since Elise Fitzpatrick died at her home in September 2016, staff at the The Dental Studio in Bergholt Road, Colchester, have been fundraising in the 24-year-old’s memory.
And because of the group’s focus on the charity Cry (Cardiac Risk in the Young), they have been given a pair of trainers belonging to music star and charity patron Pixie Lott to auction or raffle to raise money in Elise’s memory.
Stephen Pitt, who runs the dental surgery, said: “Elise is one of those people you just will never be able to replace.
“Since her death, we have all come together as a team and we are very close now. And that is all because of her.”
“It has been a really hard year for everyone, especially the girls, and we have had to really support each other through our grief.
“So often something will come up and all you can think of is Elise.
“So when V Festival was on in the summer - she used to go to that with the girls - she was on everyone’s mind.
“But if you even look at her loss in work terms, she was so cool on the front desk. She was never flustered.”
The team’s hard work over the last year was recognised as they picked up Best Team and Best Patient Care at the annual National Dentistry Awards on Friday, which Mr Pitt says was inspired by Elise.
The 42-year-old added: “We’ve worked with Elise’s mum, Kirsty, to raise awareness or sudden adult death syndrome and the girls here did the Paras 10 endurance test and raised a lot of money too.
“I could never do that so I stepped up and had my chest waxed a few months ago and everything we got in that went to Cry as well.
“We just couldn’t get our heads around this syndrome killing 15 young people every week so we’re so driven to raise as much money and awareness in her name as possible. We don’t want her to ever be forgotten.”
Elise was a perfectly fit and healthy woman when she tragically died at her home, in Rayne.
She was found dead on the sofa by her mum, who had gone to her home after not hearing from Elise all day.
After three months of investigation, her cause of death was noted as sudden adult death syndrome.
Experts could find nothing physically wrong with Elise.
However, she had been out with a friend the previous evening and had been complaining of a headache and was feeling cold.
In a bid to understand how her daughter died, mum Kirsty got involved with the Cry foundation.
She underwent various tests at St George’s Hospital, in London, which revealed she had a genetic disorder which causes an abnormal heart rhythm.
The former Notley High pupil’s DNA has been kept to see if there is a link with her mum’s disorder.
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