Mesothelioma UK Charitable Trust - Registered Charity No
£1 Million Pound Fund Raising Launch
www.mesotheliomaukappealfund.co.uk
My aim is to raise £1 Million Fund in aid of Mesothelioma UK
THE HELP LINE COSTS £1000.00 Per Week to Run
PLEASE SPONSER A MINUTES TIME AT A COST OF A £1 Per MINUTUE
Please sponser as little as 1 minute to as much as you can
One day we might need that minute so please help those that need your help
100% OF ALL MONIES RAISED WILL GO TO THE CHARITY
Myself I had a major road crash in June 2009
I am telling this story but it is NOT about me it is about the surgeon at the hospital in Sheffield and the staff to which I am forever grateful.
Mr John Edwards is perhaps one of the top thoracic surgeons in this country, he not only had the courage to operate and help my recovery but he is a man of commitment and his kindness and compassion far exceeds any one I have ever met in his position of such an eminent surgeon. Not only that his nursing staff also carries his work ethos, nothing is too much trouble, treat everyone as if they are your family and this was so true. Because of the trauma to my chest on arrival I was in so much pain his nursing staff sat with me all through several nights as this is when you are most frightened and needy, their dedication is remarkable and I received nothing more than out of this world care and dedication.
I believe a hospital is not the technology so much as the staff who run it, millions can be spent on high technical equipment but it is all wasted if the nursing staff do not have a happy working environment and are too busy to give care to their patients and this is how I felt that the other hospital staff were, they were overworked, everything was too much trouble and they were an unhappy, disgruntled team. The atmosphere of this ward then passed on to the patients in their care and I have to say this was never the case at the Sheffield hospital they were a happy caring team of excellence, you were reassured the whole time that you were getting nothing but the best of care and this is a reflection of how Mr Edwards runs his wards. Patients recover far more quickly in this type of environment, their confidence in the care they are receiving immediately makes them feel better.
Mr Edwards colaberates with Mesothelioma UK and he specialises in the treatment and research for patients with this disease and I asked him what I could do to thank him in a fundraising capacity. I had never heard of this disease but I am learning that it is a form of cancer not really recognised or brought to the forefront of fund raising and it is not funded in any way to the extent other cancers or charities are. The terrible plight these patients face and having my self gone through such pain, feel that these patients need our help.
In brief Mesothelioma is a cancer of the Mesothelium, which is a thin membrane that lines the inner surface of the chest wall and/or abdomen. It surrounds the organs found within these cavities causing the individual to experience shortness of breath, pain which can be severe, loss of appetite and weight loss and generally results in extreme fatigue and lethargy
Mesothelioma is preventable, difficult to diagnose and treat, debilitating and incurable. For everyone concerned; the patient, family, friends and health care professionals Mesothelioma is perhaps the most challenging of all cancers. Mesothelioma is preventable, difficult to diagnose and treat, debilitating and incurable.
Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos; the exposure can be quite casual and has usually occurred several decades previously. Asbestos is a natural mineral not present in UK soil consequently any asbestos used in the UK has been imported. Most victims of asbestos related disease have simply been out earning a living, working hard to provide for their family, contributing to our nation when their exposure occurred.
Mesothelioma UK provides impartial up-to-date information relating to malignant mesothelioma for all UK mesothelioma patients and their carers and health care professionals. The centre promotes the development of specialist nursing practice and facilitates associated nursing research.
They run a web site, free phone help line, newsletters and educational forums, conferences, symposiums and meetings.
Mesothelioma UK plays a pivotal role in helping all Mesothelioma interested groups to collaborate together. Essentially the newsletters facilitate this but also the lead role the centre takes in co-ordinating and communicating events surrounding Action Mesothelioma Day.
Glenfield Hospital is where Mr Edwards originally came from, there I spoke to a kind Lady called Jill head of the fund raising and discussed with her some ways in which I hopefully could assist them in raising funds, one way was to use mission fish through eBay that would cost them nothing but could bring in a great deal which they were happy about my suggestion and we are now in the final process of it being set up.
When you speak to Jill even though we have been talking about funding you can tell in her voice and other members of staff the care and compassion they feel for patients. One day we were talking about things in general and she asked how I was and straight the way she said Keith a colleague of mine might be able to help you with that and the next day Liz the consultant nurse phoned me and was able to go through my drugs and recommended other types that would help my pain and suggested that I get myself registered with a specialist chronic pain team as I will probably need them for the rest of my life. I am not a mesothelioma patient but this is what the helpline provides to patients, they are on call to care for patients and families in time of need, they are caring and so compassionate to know when patients are feeling low or need help and it is so reassuring that there is somebody at the other end of a telephone line that can help.
I would appreciate your help to raise funds by working with you if it is at all possible and with your contacts and expertise, whether it be a celebrity star studded auction with a high publicity press coverage to promote the charity or an event I would like to raise at least a million pounds and to bring their work and research the high profile publicity and funding it so much it deserves.
I have a different outlook on life now as I was very lucky to be alive from the crash, I was even more fortunate to be looked after by Mr Edwards and his staff and you then realise how lucky you are and life is worth more than anything money can ever buy accept the help you need from professionals and I would appreciate any help and assistance you could give me to help them and help people in their time of need.
