'I cry myself to sleep fearing end of hospital'

[Guest guest]

'I cry myself to sleep fearing end of hospital'

Published: 19th April 2006

http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/s/211/211806_i_cry_myself_to_sleep_fe\

aring_end_of_hospital.html

A BRAVE seven-year-old girl has told how she cries herself to sleep at night

over plans to close the children's ward at Macclesfield Hospital.

Whittaker - a regular patient - who suffers from incurable systemic

juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is happy to battle her illness among the staff

who she knows and loves.

She says she is " scared of the big hospital " - Alder Hey in Liverpool - and

knows when she is sick there her mum and dad won't be able to spend nights

with her because they have to look after her brother.

Little of Rotherhead Drive, Macclesfield, was so worried about the

future of the unit which has played such a large part in her life she

decided to put pen to paper and take part in the Making It Better

consultation.

Written from the heart, the little girl's letter tells how she cries herself

to sleep because she knows if she had to travel further for treatment, her

mum might not be able to stay overnight with her.

And it will be harder for her younger brother , five, friends, family

and teachers to visit if she is sick.

said: " I wrote the letter because I don't want the children's ward to

close down because they have looked after me. And I like it when all my

friends come to visit me at Macclesfield. "

Paediatric inpatient, maternity and neonatal services are under threat at

part of the Making It Better review across Greater Manchester and East

Cheshire.

Macclesfield Hospital appears in Option D - not the preferred option.

People have until Friday, May 12, to take part in the consultation and make

their views known.

Mum Jayne Whittaker cares full-time for and dad Stefan is an

electrical engineer at Kemutec in Macclesfield.

Jayne says the possibility that Macclesfield will lose its children's

services has left her daughter devastated and the youngster has even

confided her fears in her teachers and nurses.

's bond with Macclesfield Hospital began when she was cared for in the

Special Care Baby Unit for three months after she was born 13 weeks

premature at Leighton Hospital.

She spent almost half the first year of her life in the children's ward with

chest and breathing problems because her lungs were so underdeveloped when

she was born.

And in October 2004, screaming in pain, with a scarlet rash, raging

temperature and aching joints, was rushed to Macclesfield.

Unable to walk or even sit up, she was eventually diagnosed with systemic

juvenile rheumatoid arthritis - a paintful debilitating stiffening and

aching of the joints - and transferred to Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool.

She was put on high doses of steroids and small doses of chemotherapy, and

was able to walk again a few days later.

She spent two weeks in Liverpool and a further fortnight at Macclesfield

Hospital.

Jayne said: " What has been through is unbelievable. When she was

treated at Alder Hey it was a very difficult time for us.

" We were trying to get to school and look after him. But you can't

just nip to another hospital, we had to organise child-care and Stefan had

to have time off work.

" Alder Hey were lovely with but it is a very big, very impersonal

place to a small child and she was scared.

" When we go to Macclesfield everyone knows her by name. It meant such a lot

to when and her friends, family and teachers could visit and

one of us could sleep next to her bed. "

has been in remission for just over 12 months now but still has

weekly chemotherapy at Macclesfield Hospital.

She has returned to St Alban's Primary School part-time but stills struggles

to walk some days.

" There is no cure for 's condition and we don't know her possible

chances of relapse. It is frustrating for us because we don't know how long

she will have it or if she will grow out of it.

" I do not know how we would cope without the children's ward at

Macclesfield. is on open access so if we are worried, we just pop to

the ward. If we had to travel that would be a big upheaval.

" Dr Tina Marinaki, a paediatric consultant at Macclesfield was marvellous

and we would not have got through all this without her, " added Jayne.