A thankful mum who took on a daring skydive, as well as organising a charity night and raffle, has raised over £4,000 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, as thanks to the medics who saved her three-year-old son’s life.

Leanne Joynson had barely spent 24 hours at home with her new-born baby, Moses, when mother’s intuition told Leanne to take him to their local A&E in Coventry. Moses wasn’t feeding properly, she had noticed him retching, and then suddenly he started vomiting bright green fluid.

Fearing that Moses had an obstruction in his bowel, doctors transferred him straight to Birmingham Children’s Hospital. It was there that specialists on the Neonatal Unit confirmed that Moses had Hirschprung disease, a rare condition which meant that part of his bowel wasn’t working and so he couldn’t pass stool by himself.

Moses needed a procedure called a pull-through, which involved removing the part of the bowel which didn’t work and pulling through the normal bowel, which did, then connecting it all up. Unfortunately, the family would have to wait until Moses was five-months-old to have the surgery, so in the meantime Leanne and her husband, Dean, were taught how to perform rectal washouts, twice daily, until the operation could go ahead.

The time finally came for the surgery, and although the family were nervous, it went without a hitch. Resilient little Moses adapted well to his new way of life, but just four months later, he fell ill with an infection. Moses was admitted to his local hospital for treatment, but when he showed no signs of improvement, doctors felt they needed to rush Moses back to Birmingham via critical care ambulance service, KIDS NTS. There, it was discovered that Moses had contracted Hirschsprung Enterocolitis, a bowel infection, which had turned into life-threatening sepsis. Distraught, Leanne could only watch in horror as doctors battled to save her baby’s life.

Moses spent another three and a half weeks at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, during which time doctors told the family that his bowel had become so badly infected, he would need a stoma opening to give his bowel time to heal. An ileostomy was formed for his waste to pass out of, bypassing the infected area.

Thankfully, after more intense treatment and another operation to refashion the stoma opening, three-year-old Moses is making fantastic progress. Forever grateful to the hospital for the life-saving care Moses has already received and the care she kno

ws he will need in the future, Leanne has literally thrown herself into fundraising for the hospital’s charity.

Leanne said: “Although a skydive seems extreme, nothing is as scary as thinking your baby won’t pull through and I’ll never be able to put into words just how grateful I am to all of the staff at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, including the surgical Ward 9, and KIDS NTS, who all made sure Moses is still here today.

“The event I held in aid of the charity exceeded any expectations I had, and the raffle went down a storm thanks to the support of numerous local businesses who donated prizes, including England match tickets, a television and overnight hotel stays. I’m just so proud and pleased to be able to give back to the hospital in this way.”

Miranda Williams, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Hearing that your child’s life is hanging in the balance is any parent’s worst nightmare, and even though Leanne has faced that reality more than once since Moses’s diagnosis, we’re so grateful that she’s been able to channel that experience into fundraising for us.

“The incredible amount she raised with her scary skydive and cracking charity night will go towards helping us do more for sick kids, just like Moses.”