Family and friends of Elliot Andrew Davey, who passed away aged nine on 28 September 2019, have fundraised for East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust’s official charity, ELHT&Me, in his memory. The funds have been used to purchase a vein viewer for the Children’s Unit at Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital, where Elliot received treatment.
Elliot was diagnosed with a significant brain injury in June 2010, after suffering a major stroke and kidney failure at only five weeks old. The result of such tragic circumstances meant that he needed 24/7 complex care and medication throughout his life.
In his later years, Elliot needed frequent emergency admissions to the Children’s Unit and extended stays on the ward. On each of these occasions Elliot was required to be cannulated, his visits were so close together it was often difficult to find any other veins to give him the appropriate treatment.
Vein viewers use near-infrared light to project a ‘map’ of the patient’s veins on to the skin, making the process of finding a vein much easier and less painful and traumatic for children. Elliot’s family have already donated his personal vein viewer to the ward and launched their campaign for a second one shortly before he passed away. They requested donations in lieu of flowers at his funeral and set-up a Just Giving page with the help of Samantha Anderton from the Children’s Unit. The Globe Bullough Park Football Club raised over £600 towards the cause, and a friend of the family, Gemma Harling, hosted a pre-Christmas event at Great Harwood Golf Club, raising £500.
“Elliot had the most amazing family and friends and he brought joy to so many people”, said his mum, Fiona. “His life, all be it short, was filled with fun and laughter and he will be remembered by all that knew him with such joy and happiness. Elliot had a wealth of love wrapped around him and he gave as much as he received.”
“There has been a wonderful reaction the fundraising, with lots of donations coming from many sources, we wanted to say a huge thankyou to you all from us all. The vein viewer made such a difference for Elliot that we decided we would like to fundraise for one, in memory of Elliot, as a way to give back to the hospital that cared for him”.
“We are very grateful that we were able to enjoy so many happy memories with Elliot and that he is now at peace. Our family would like to continue to fundraise in memory of Elliot, to provide more equipment and resources for the hospital – making sure that children like our little man are as comfortable as possible whilst receiving treatment.”
Denise Gee, Fundraising Manager for ELHT&Me, said: “The two vein viewers kindly donated by Elliot’s family will make a huge difference to our young patients, making procedures like cannulation and drawing blood an easier, less painful process.”
“We’d like to say a huge thank you to Elliot’s family and their friends who have supported the Children’s Unit in this way, and we look forward to continuing to work with them, giving Elliot the legacy he deserves.”