Man given just hours to live after eating a pub roast dinner
Next time I chow down on a gravy-drenched Sunday roast, I'll think of Udhyam Amin.
That's because back in February of this year, this poor 64-year-old father-of-three was left fighting for his life after ordering a chicken dinner down at the pub.
With his blood pH falling critically low, Mr Amin was quickly rushed to St Helier Hospital in Sutton, South London, with suspected food poisoning, but things got so much worse.
In a resuscitation suite, he went into cardiac arrest after complaining of stomach cramps and needed to be placed on a ventilator.
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The patient's family, including daughter Parisha Bains (who works as a surgical registrar at Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust), were then informed that he was the sickest person in the whole building at the time.
Mr Amin was dealing with sepsis and multi-organ failure, meaning death was a real possibility.
"It felt like our world had fallen apart," said Parisha. "Nothing prepares you for hearing that the person you love may not make it through the day. We were told he had gone into sepsis and multi-organ failure. Most of his critical organs had shut down."
Mr Amin ultimately spent a fortnight in an induced coma before having to learn how to walk again; he'd contracted a bacterial infection from campylobacter.
"It's nothing short of a miracle that he is still with us. We laugh and joke that he's like a cat with nine lives," added Parisha, who went on to wax lyrical about the ITU staff.
"They comforted us through endless uncertainty, answered every question with kindness, celebrated every tiny improvement with us and gave us hope when hope seemed impossible to find. But he made it through the night and that wasn't expected.
"One of the first things he asked us when he woke up was what date it was because he had to submit his tax returns!"
Staff nurse Pooja Rani was present throughout Mr Amin's health crisis, and commented: "Seeing him make such a remarkable recovery and return home to his family is exactly why we do what we do. It was a privilege to be part of his journey, and we're all delighted to see him back enjoying life again."
Mr Amin himself 'cannot express my gratitude for the exceptional care' he received at St Helier earlier this year, but in an attempt to do so, he's set up a JustGiving page.
Per the description, donations of all sizes will go 'directly to St Helier Hospital to help provide equipment, facilities and resources that will support the care of future critically ill patients and the families who stand beside them, hoping for the same miracle that we were blessed to receive'.
As things stand, this fundraiser that began with a £1,500 target has garnered £30,700 in donations.
Topics: Food And Drink, Health
Dan Seddon