A man whose father spent two months in intensive care is running more than 100km between three hospitals to raise funds.
Last summer, John Harris was admitted to the Intensive Therapy Unit (ITU) at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital after battling pneumonia, organ failure, and undergoing open-heart surgery. After three-and-a-half-months in hospital, he finally returned home and thanks to the staff at Grimsby, made a remarkable recovery.
His son James wanted to give something back to the unit who cared for his dad, so set a target of raising £10,000 – £100 for each day he spent in ITU/hospital – to help purchase much-needed medical equipment for critically ill patients.
On 6 September, James will retrace his dad’s hospital journey from Louth County Hospital to Grimsby hospital, Castle Hill Hospital, and back to Grimsby. He will be joined along the way by friends, family and staff who will be running, biking, walking, and cheering him on.
James said: “My mum took dad to Louth Hospital with what we thought was a very bad chest infection. Within two hours, he was being bluelighted to Grimsby where he was admitted to the ITU. Dad was diagnosed with pneumonia and multiple organ failure, resulting in open heart surgery at Castle Hill. He was in a coma for a long time and spent 55 days in ITU.
“The staff were incredible and they really looked after dad, and us as well when we came to see him. The idea for doing the run came when he was still in hospital. We enjoy running and have done some marathons before but nothing like this. One of the nurses is going to join us on a bike during the Grimsby to Hull section, and family and friends are also joining us along the way. We wanted to give something back to the ITU.”
The Health Tree Foundation – the official charity for Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust – will be using the money to purchase a second Sara Combilizer chair (rehab support chair) for Grimsby’s ITU.
Sarah Greetham, Grimsby ITU Manager, said: “The chair allows early mobilisation and enables us to get patients out of bed in a critical care setting. Staff can put the patient in a lying, sitting or standing position, and it provides mobility and exercise therapy. It also means we can take patients out into our ITU garden to get fresh air.
“It’s fantastic how much James and his supporters have raised for us, thank you so much to everyone involved.”
You can donate via JustGiving.