I thought we’d lost our son but air ambulance saved his life
Boy, 2, had been run over by car
AFATHER has told how the North West Air Ambulance crew saved his two-year-old son’s life after he was struck by a car and sustained lifethreatening injuries.
Rob Baron’s two-year-old son (now four), Henry, endured horrific injuries when his head went under the wheel of a car on Cowm Park Way, in Whitworth, while out on a walk with his mum and aunt on 20 October 2021.
He suffered from multiple facial and skull fractures, chest and lung injuries, internal bleeding and a lacerated spleen.
Henry’s aunt Beth described the horror that unfolded, she said: “Me, Henry and his mum Alex went for a walk at teatime.
“He was walking between us and just playing.
“He suddenly took a tumble onto the road as a car was coming past and his head went under the wheel.
“My gut feeling was that he was dead.
“His mum Alex picked him up and she was screaming.”
Rob, a senior school nurse in Rochdale, picked up the story when he arrived at the scene.
He said: “When Alex explained to me what had happened my heart just sank, and I thought we had lost him.”
Air ambulance paramedics raced to the scene, performing a blood transfusion and minor chest surgery, where he was taken directly to the nearest children’s major trauma centre.
Dr Ed Dennison Davies, part of the North West Air Ambulance Charity team who delivers enhanced prehospital care at the roadside, said: “When we arrived Henry was already in the ambulance.
He had significant head injuries. There was blood in his airways, and he wasn’t responsive.
“He immediately needed emergency anaesthetic and we had to give him a blood transfusion to ensure his blood pressure and heart rate were mitigated as soon as possible.
“After that, we performed some minor chest surgery to make sure his lungs could expand properly.
“Having carried out this intervention at the scene Henry was stable enough to be taken directly to the nearest children’s major trauma centre.”
Henry underwent 10 hours of surgery and was in intensive care for 10 days when arriving at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.
He remained in the hospital for five weeks and during rehabilitation he had to learn to crawl, walk, talk, eat and drink again.
“I just remember the first time he opened his eyes I just thought ‘Yep, that’s Henry.’ It was such a relief.
“Within hours he was asking for mummy and daddy and his dinosaurs!
“He’s obsessed with dinosaurs.
“Recovery is going very well. Henry has been absolutely amazing and has been discharged from the majority of specialities,” 36-year-old Rob said.
Without the enhanced pre-hospital care given at the roadside by the North West Air Ambulance Charity’s Dr Ed and his team, Rob fears his son would never have survived.
Dr Ed said: “This is the reason we do what we do to help that small number of critically unwell patients where critical intervention needs to happen as soon as possible, so that we can deliver the best care and the best outcome.”
The North West Air Ambulance Charity, which relies completely on public and corporate donations to carry on saving lives, is celebrating its 24th anniversary.
The charity is not part of the NHS and doesn’t receive any government funding – therefore it must raise over £12 million every year to continue its lifesaving service.
Since its launch in 1999, the North West Air Ambulance Charity has been called to over 31,000 missions across the region, an average of around seven times a day.
Recently, Henry and his family visited the North West Air Ambulance Charity based in Manchester and met Dr Ed and the Critical Care team.
Dr Ed said: “Often we see our patients at the roadside, but it is rare you get to see them afterwards.
“When you do, it really brings home the value of what we do.
“To be able to see someone like Henry make a great recovery is so rewarding.
“It makes you realise how worthwhile this job really is.”
As Henry continues on his road to recovery, Rob said: “I don’t think words will ever say how grateful we are as a family to the North West Air Ambulance Charity.
“And to everyone who donates you have given us as a family a chance to live our lives again and for Henry to live his life as fully as possible.”
For more information on the North West Air Ambulance Charity or to donate, please visit nwairambulance.org.uk or call 0800 587 4570.