In 1981 I worked for 6 months as a volunteer at Alyn
Hospital. This was a few years before I started my medical training and
probably influenced my choice of later career. The work was hard physically (no
hoists in those days) and emotionally. The children were all severely disabled –
unable to live with their families – needing help with all personal care. The
place was however busy, positive and great fun. When my shifts on the ward were
over, I often went back just to socialise. Alyn is the only place of its kind in
Israel and I have not come across anywhere in the UK with a similar positive
approach.

I went back to visit a few years ago. The building was still
the same. But the children were not. The severely disabled ones who could not
live with their families were now living with their families, with outpatient
clinic support. In their place were children who, in the 1980’s, would not even
have left the maternity unit alive. From memory, about 30% were
ventilator-dependant. How can a young child have a happy life and grow up into
an adult and citizen when their life is so restricted? I saw how. The image of a
group of toddlers, each ventilated through a tracheostomy, having fun,
splashing around in the swimming pool has remained.

The majority of funding for Alyn comes through donations;
much from the annual sponsored bike ride. https://www.alynactive.org/event/ride/
It is not a cheap place to run. As well as the cost of the expert staff, a huge
amount is spent on specialist technology (much of it patient-specific and built
in-house).

Covid has cost Alyn dearly. Fortunately, only money has been
lost. The children would clearly not have had the strength to survive a serious
respiratory infection. So a plan was put in place to isolate them and their
carers totally. This required much of the inside of the hospital to be rebuilt.
This obviously added huge unplanned capital and revenue costs. All at a time
when donations were reducing and the bike ride had to be cancelled.

This is where we come in. Please join me in making a
contribution. As always, even a tiny donation is welcome. But, if you are
blessed with being able to give lots without feeling much pain, then please do.
And yes, if you do give anything (however little), you are invited to my Zoom
Birthday Party on Sunday 16^th May at 21:00 BST. If I don’t know you
(yet), do still please come along. I will enjoy meeting you. Bring a drink.
Tea, whisky (I will have both) or whatever you like. See you then.

Here is a video about Alyn made by a visitor. Take a look. https://youtu.be/pmUlqJgpyDs