By David Hennessy
To support the team at The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery who are putting themselves in harm’s way to care for patients, including an increasing number with Covid-19, the National Brain Appeal has set up the emergency care fund.
The appeal aims to provide immediate and practical assistance where it is needed and to support the staff with any hardships as a result of the crisis and in the immediate aftermath.
The appeal has already had support from a prominent figure of the Irish community in London.
Tim O’Sullivan and his wife Kacey O’Driscoll have donated £5,000 on behalf of the Danny Sullivan Group.
In 2017, Tim’s father Danny received life-saving treatment at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, the UK’s leading centre of excellence for treating diseases of the brain, spine and nervous system.
Danny O’Sullivan spent five months at the hospital following a life-threatening brain haemorrhage resulting from a ruptured aneurysm. Danny needed emergency surgery and three subsequent operations, spent six weeks in intensive care, two weeks in the high dependency unit and a further three months on a ward where he needed intensive rehabilitation to help him to re-learn how to walk and talk.
Danny’s son, Tim O’Sullivan, managing director of the Danny Sullivan Group, said: “My father worked long hours but always looked after his health so it was a huge shock to our family when he suddenly became unwell. We feel lucky to have been in such good hands, from dad’s GP’s quick action to get him to hospital, to his consultant neurosurgeon for saving his life in the operating theatre, to the nurses, physios, occupational therapists and psychologists who helped him to recover and taught him to walk and talk again. We are eternally grateful.
“Seeing my father doing so well now is testament to the incredible skill and expertise of the staff at The National Hospital. My wife Kacey, my family and I are grateful every day for not only saving his life, but returning him to such good health that he can live and enjoy a normal life. He is still involved in the business but taking it much easier these days.”
The Danny Sullivan Group previously donated £76,000 to The National Brain Appeal’s Aphasia Programme that helps rehabilitate patients after a stroke. Tim and his wife Kacey O’Driscoll raised this by cycling 1000 miles from Lands End to John O’Groats in 2018.
Theresa Dauncey, Chief Executive of The National Brain Appeal, said: “We are so grateful to Tim, Kacey and the Danny Sullivan Group for their very generous donation to The National Brain Appeal’s Emergency Fund for The National Hospital. They have seen first hand the dedication and skill of clinical staff when Tim’s father Danny was a patient there. With the current Covid-19 crisis, all staff are working incredibly hard, from the doctors, nurses and pharmacists to the porters, domestics and support staff. They are putting themselves on the frontline and taking on longer shifts to care for patients. We will do whatever we can to support them now and in the future.”
To donate to support NHS staff at The National Hospital of Neurology and Neurosurgery, click here.
