Thanks to the NHS Charities Together Covid-19 Urgent Appeal, Oxford Hospitals Charity has purchased 120 specialist monitors to help children and young people with cystic fibrosis (CF) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Children with cystic fibrosis normally need regular appointments in hospital to measure their lung function, and this equipment means they can now have the tests done at home. The equipment has been sent to homes across Oxfordshire and the surrounding counties.
16 year old Joseph Lomax is already using the equipment from his home.
“I’ve not been well for a while and I’m currently on a course of IV antibiotics so I was really pleased when the lung function machine that the charity has funded arrived. It is already been really useful in monitoring my progress and keeping me, and my nurse informed of my health. It also helps because it reassures us all. Having cystic fibrosis I am considered extremely vulnerable by the government during this COVID-19 pandemic.”
Joseph Lomax
Dr Jeremy Hull, the Oxford Children’s Cystic Fibrosis Director, asked the charity to purchase the monitors. He said:
“The families we work with are really relieved to have the monitors and they are already giving good results, which means our patients and their parents are being reassured very quickly, without having to come in to hospitals. It is fantastic to be able to remove this anxiety and still get an objective and clear measurement of the lung function. So we are really thrilled the charity could help us – and in such a timely manner too.”
Douglas Graham, CEO of Oxford Hospitals Charity said:
“Our charity has always been there for patients and staff in our hospitals, but the need right now is greater than ever, and we are doing our utmost to help wherever we can. We were delighted to have the support of NHS Charities Together, to be able to react so quickly and provide this support for so many young people with CF, like Joseph. It is very good to hear how reassuring it is for families to have this equipment with them at home.”
Read more on the Oxford Hospitals Charity website
Urgent Appeal Grants
Grants given to NHS charities are used to meet the immediate and urgent needs of patients, staff and volunteers. Funding is also going towards helping partnerships outside hospitals, such as hospices, community healthcare and social care, making sure patients leaving hospital have access to the care they need to recover. In the longer term it will also fund programmes to help staff and volunteers recover fully once the crisis has abated, reducing the long-term impact on them and the people they care about.
About the Urgent Appeal
The NHS Charities Together Urgent Appeal acknowledges and supports NHS staff and volunteers caring for COVID-19 patients. It has been put together in liaison with NHS England and national bodies, our member NHS charities and national giving platforms. Click here to donate.
