Thinking of Oscar aims to support and help sick children and their families during their time in hospital by funding projects and innovation over and above that supplied by the NHS. The charity was set up by our good friends David and Hannah Cole, who lost their little boy in June 2014. Oscar was being treated for a routine infection when he died very suddenly and completely unexpectedly at sixteen months old. After months of analysis and investigation, it was eventually understood that Oscar contracted Rotavirus during his treatment which in turn lead to Encephalitis, a viral infection of the brain which took over his brain stem and led to his death. Essentially, it was a combination of bad luck and bad timing and was utterly devastating. What happened to David and Hannah could have happened to any family, but their reaction to such a horrific situation has been truly inspiring. From the outset they were determined to ensure that the time that they spent with him was just the first of many chapters in his name, and as such, Thinking of Oscar was founded. 

In less than 3 years Thinking of Oscar has raised in excess of £150,000 which has funded innovative vein finding devices that are now being used at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford and Great Ormond Street as well as the £100,000 required to fully fund a new Paediatric Procedures Unit for the Oxford Children's Hospital. They have also started working with other children's hospitals throughout the UK.

For more information visit www.thinkingofoscar.com