Please help to make a positive impact and support the new Emergency and Critical Care Appeal at Dorset County Hospital.

Dillon Obrien and myself are joining Michael Dooley, former consultant at Dorset County Hospital, who is leading the way on the 100km Jurassic Challenge to raise £100,000 to provide exceptional care to those who need it most.

This unique challenge is not just about physical endurance, it's about coming together as a community, united by a shared goal of providing exceptional care to those who need it most.

Our story :

My Son Dillon spent Christmas in the Critical Care Unit.

Dillon was left fighting for his life on Boxing Day after going to DCH with a swollen hand and unbearable pain, after monitoring Dillon for several hours it was decided to take him to the operating theatre for further investigations. From this the surgeon found sepsis and had to do major surgery to the hand and arm to cut out the infection. Doctors warned my wife and I that Dillon, 20 years old, was serious ill, and his life hung in the balance.

They revealed Dillon was battling sepsis, one of the deadliest conditions caused by the immune system responding abnormally to an infection.

Dillon spent the next five days in ICU battling with several antibiotics trying to help fight the infection, four of these days were spent on life support in a coma after not waking up from the operation, his heart wasn't coping with trauma resulting in being put onto life support.

Miraculously Dillon made it through intensive care before he was transferred to Salisbury hospital on New year’s eve, where he spent the whole of January, sadly undergoing amputations and major reconstructive reconstructive surgery. Dillon's journey to recovery had just begun.

Over the next 3 weeks Dillon endured 11 operations which on the worst days were over 12hrs long. Dillon had to have 2 fingers amputated, as well as the top of his right forearm, resulting in a significant skin flap being removed from the whole top of his thigh to reconstruct his hand and arm and a skin graft taken from his other leg to patch the first leg and a vein takin from his left arm to put in his right arm as well as several smaller skin graphs taken from the upper arm. Dillon has been left with significant scarring and life changing injuries which he is continuing to apapt to and is currently receiving ongoing support and care including physiotherapy three time a week at the Wessex rehabilitation centre, Salisbury.

The DCH team are amazing!

It's not until you suffer something so horrendously traumatic that you see and are truly thankful for, the incrediable care and support DCH & all the staff give, and what an invaluable job they do, they truly were the lifeline for Dillon and my wife and I will always be greatful.

I thank you for saving My sons life.

The need for enhanced care to improve facilities for patients, relatives and staff is imperative. Please help where you can. Thank you.