Dave, dad, was a healthy, happy, content 57 year old man looking forward to an exciting 2014. Sadly, on New Year's Day he sustained what turned out to be a fatal head injury. Just a small bad choice to collect some spare keys over a side gate at home led to a slip and fall, unfortunately the impact all to his head. 

He was taken to the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, a neuro-specialist. He was rushed into Theatre for his first operation to remove a growing blood clot on the brain. A few days on while in an induced coma it was decided a second operation was required to fully remove part of the skull and thus lower his brain pressure. He was weaned off of the sedation after a week. But by the 15th of January, it was clear dad would never wake up, a serious infection making his condition even worse. They decided to take dad off of life support and medication that day. Dad passed away in the early hours of 27th January 2014.

During his time at the Royal London dad was cared for impeccably round the clock. He was washed, turned, shaved, medication changed, tested - the list goes on. The staff, particularly those in the intensive care unit/ACCU (Adult Critical Care Unit), were incredible and ensured that dad had the most comfortable possible stay. Importantly for us, we were updated with news frequently and the staffs' empathetic understanding of our family situation made things as easy as they can under the circumstance. 

We'd like to raise funds towards a piece of equipment (to be confirmed) in the intensive care ward (4E/4F) that cannot be funded by the NHS. This will further improve the care patients receive on the ward and making staffs' life easier. 

Donations will be passed to the Friends of the Royal London Hospital, who will coordinate the funds. Friends is a small, registered charity and relies fully on donations and volunteers (no salaries paid to staff). In early February 2014, the Friends unveiled a new MRI scanner for the radiology unit that was more comfortable for patients, particularly children.

Thank you for reading.

Chris & Matt Cox (sons)

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