Claire Brown – Friday 9th August 2019 – 2.45pm.
Ambulance staff from Bromsgrove Hub are joining forces with 999 colleagues later this month to help find a donor match for a little boy who urgently needs a transplant.
Bromsgrove-based Clinical Team Mentors Abi Coombs and Ruth Hodgson and Technician Caroline Hadley have been following the story of ‘Finn the Fabulous’; a seven-year-old boy called Finn Hill from Clent who has a rare and life-threatening condition where the immune system begins to damage a person’s own tissues and organs.
His only hope of a cure is a stem cell transplant from a perfectly matched donor which has led his family to work tirelessly to raise awareness about the condition as well as hold events to get people to register to be donors by doing a simple mouth swab.
Abi, Ruth and Caroline have now helped to organise a tri-service open day at Bromsgrove Fire and Police Station on Saturday 31st August, 12pm – 4pm, where people can come to sign up as a blood stem cell donor and have a swab taken in the hope of finding a perfect match for Finn.
Caroline said: “Finn’s story is one that has captured our attention and our hearts. Aged just seven, he’s been battling this condition for three years of his short life already. Organising ambulance representation at the tri-service open day is the least we could do to ensure Finn gets as much help as possible to find a stem cell match to save his life.”
If you aren’t already on the UK Stem Cell Register and are free on Saturday 31st August, please come along! Alternatively, you can visit the UK Stem Cell Register via dkms.org.uk or anthonynolan.org. To find out more about Finn the Fabulous, visit https://www.facebook.com/finnthefabulous/.
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Notes to Editors: Photographs courtesy of HWFRS.