We have not given any news on the blog for a while because we’re just back from a long hospital trip…
Our daughter A. and "Andrew Bear", a gift from the Scottish Ambulance Service
Our daughter A. got very ill with severe breathing difficulties almost 2 weeks ago. After a trip to GP out of hours and then Raigmore hospital in Inverness, she had to be transfered (by helicopter and under sedation and ventilation) to the paediatrics intensive care unit (PICU) at Yorkhill hospital in Glasgow. She was diagnosed with bronchiolitis (basically a viral pneumonia) caused by the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) which is common in the winter but extremely rare at that time of the year. Although many children catch RSV and cope OK, she reacted particularly badly to the virus and was in great distress. She had to stay in intensive care under sedation and ventilation for 6 days before being moved to a standard paediatrics ward in Glasgow and then back to Raigmore hospital in Inverness. Luckily A. has now made a good recovery (she definitely has got her voice back!) and we have been told that there should be no lasting consequences.
It has been a very stressful time for all of us and we are very grateful to the people who have helped us along the way. The medical staff both at Raigmore hospital in Inverness and Yorkhill hopsital in Glasgow were top class. We were particularly impressed by the staff and facilities at the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Yorkhill hospital. The staff from the Scottish Ambulance Service were great. The helicopter paramedic gave A. a teddy bear which has now been named “Andrew Bear” after him. Thank you so much.
The Ronald McDonald House in Glasgow.
We are very grateful to the friends who helped at very short notice with our dog Sam, the house and the chickens when we had to leave home. JP’s employer was also very accommodating. Thanks you so much, you know who you are. We also got many messages of support from friends and colleagues. Thanks to you all.
Last but not least, accommodation in Glasgow was provided to us for free by the Ronald MacDonald House in Glasgow. The work done by this charity is amazing: they provide accomodation for parents who have to accompany their sick children to hospital and live afar. We cannot stress enough how relieved we were to be able to stay 5 minutes from the hospital in those stressful times. For all your help many many thanks. If you want to support the work of the Ronald McDonald House, follow this link: http://www.justgiving.com/yorkhillfamilyhouse/Donate
We are delighted to be home but our thoughts are with the families of the children who are still hospitalised at Yorkhill hospital.
That must have been terrifying! Best wishes to all of you. I’m glad A. is doing well now.
I too think the Ronald McDonald house is awesome.