Patrick’s story

Every parent’s nightmare

“Life without hospice care would be impossible,” Keri says. “To imagine a world where it doesn’t exist due to lack of Government funding, and where families like mine could not access this specialist support, is unthinkable.”

Patrick, now aged two, suffered a brain injury when he was born suddenly and unexpectedly at home. In the space of a few hours, Keri and husband Andy went from excitedly expecting the arrival of a healthy baby to their lives being changed forever.

Patrick was born breech, a term used for when a baby is born bottom first instead of head first. But, being at home, Keri had no medical assistance while waiting for the emergency services to arrive.

Patrick’s journey to Acorns

“And then all I remember is hearing the words ‘children’s hospice’, and you instantly think the worst. I had learned, when I was young, that it was a place where children go to die.”

Over several weeks Patrick fought for survival, but Keri remembers feeling resentment when she was referred to Acorns Children’s Hospice.

“I didn’t want to come and I didn’t want to speak to anybody,” Keri said. “I certainly didn’t want to come and look around, and no matter how many people times people said it’s not like a hospital, I didn’t believe them.

“The car journey there was awkward, and we just braced ourselves. But it was like when you walk off an airplane you get hit by that wave of heat – and we walked into the hospice and just got hit with this wave of warmth and friendliness.”

Acorns care and support

Keri added: “During the visit I got lost trying to find the bathroom, and I saw one of the nurses in a room with a child, and the nurse was chatting to them about the weather, and singing songs, and she didn’t even know I was there.

“I knew from that moment that I was in the right place – and that it was a magical place.”

Acorns provides rehabilitative respite to Patrick and his family, and a tailored medical plan to meet all of his needs.

He particularly enjoys therapy in the sensory room, and hydrotherapy in the hospice pool.

The hospice’s specialist nursing team also supports him with pain and symptom management through hydrotherapy sessions in the hospice pool and palliative play and sensory therapy.

It was later diagnosed that Patrick had suffered Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE), a brain injury caused before, during or after birth when oxygen or blood flow to the brain is reduced or stopped.

Keri is now raising her hand and urging the Government to secure the Children’s Hospice Grant and long-term funding for children’s hospice care, for families just like hers and children like Patrick. 

“What I do know for certain is that we’ll always need Acorns.” Keri added.

“The future of children’s hospice care is in the Government’s hands and it’s in the hands of the Prime Minister. It’s in the hands of everyone.”