Doncaster mum on lockdown life with severely ill son

“We don’t know how long we have Jack for, we do know it’s not for long so we make every day as happy as we can.”
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These are the words of a brave Doncaster mum looking after her seriously ill son during the coronavirus lockdown.

Victoria Lee, aged 36, from Bessacarr, spoke about his condition and paid tribute to the NHS saying: “If it wasn’t for them, Jack wouldn’t be alive today.”

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Jack Kirsopp, 14, has a rare condition which brings multiple and severely complex medical needs. He requires 24/7 adult specialist support along with one-to-one care.

Jack Kirsopp, aged 10, has a rare condition which brings multiple and severely complex medical needs. He requires 24/7 adult specialist support along with one-to-one care. 

Jack Kirsopp, aged 10, has a rare condition which brings multiple and severely complex medical needs. He requires 24/7 adult specialist support along with one-to-one care.
Jack Kirsopp, aged 10, has a rare condition which brings multiple and severely complex medical needs. He requires 24/7 adult specialist support along with one-to-one care.

His mum said brave Jack has been in and out of hospital and on and off the ventilators his whole life and has also had three cardiac arrests.

The heroic mum-of-two, alongside partner Jonathan, have had to make the heartbreaking decision to stop the majority of the carers coming to the house due to risk of infection.

She said this had been ‘exhausting’ as Jack ‘can’t be left unattended for a second as its a danger to his life’.

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Jack is one of the 1.5 million people that are on the shielding protection list set by NHS England and has received a letter to say he is one of the most medically vulnerable people in the country.

Doncaster Royal Infirmary have had to cancel all of Jack’s routine appointments due to staff redeployment. Medics have even had to cancel a medical procedure that Jack requires every three months which has increased the risk for him.

Victoria said: “We have had to say our goodbyes to our son so many times but he is such a fighter.

“He has worsening scoliosis – curvature of the spine - which is crushing his lungs and causing chronic pain and discomfort so he is on a pain management plan. He gets recurrent chest infections including pneumonia and bronchitis.

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“He coughs up blood and requires a lot of medical interventions 24/7 to keep his airway clear as it blocks with thick secretions and causes him to struggle to breathe.

“His condition has deteriorated over the years but despite all this he is such a happy, and fun loving boy that continues to fight in the face of adversity.”

The family is ‘super organised’ already, but this has been made harder due to the pandemic.

Victoria and partner Jonathan said they use antibacterial products on everything as a daily routine, due to Jack’s condition, but the family have had problems getting hold of disinfectant products.

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She said: “We are not getting PPE which is a constant worry for us and making us lose sleep as we are petrified of Jack getting the virus. If he got this virus it would kill him.

“We have had to up our game and plan even more ahead because Jack needs his medical stock, medications and such to survive.

“We have faced challenges with his care as some of his nurses have had to be pulled out to work on intensive care which means they can’t come back to care for Jack which then means we have gone without care.”