Rachel Duncan

Thank you for saving our dear boy James

In February 2021 James was the victim of a horrific stabbing. He was taking his Mum’s bike out for a test ride when a group of boys carried out an unprovoked attack, he was knocked from his bike and violently stabbed multiple times. 

The stab wounds that James sustained led to a catastrophic bleed and he suffered a cardiac arrest and was effectively dead for 50 minutes. James had no oxygen to his brain and organs, as a result he suffered a hypoxic brain injury. At the scene of the incident James was given roadside heart surgery, his chest was opened exposing his heart and his heart was re-started.  On arrival at hospital I was informed that James was taken to resuscitation and then on to theatre, where he spent hours being treated. The stab wounds he sustained were to his chest, the knife lacerated his liver, ripped thorough his diaphragm, punctured his lung and ripped his aorta (heart) . 

The family were told that we must prepare for the worst because James was not breathing on his own, his liver was badly damaged and he would need dialysis as his kidneys were failing. When the surgeons repaired the damage that James sustained he was taken to intensive care unit (ICU). Due to James’ injuries and having roadside heart surgery, his blood pressure was very unstable, his body could not cope with the pressure of his chest being closed so James’ chest was open for 9days. The risk of James contracting sepsis was so great and his body was very weak, we prayed that this would not happen.

During the first few days of James being in ICU he suffered multiple cardiac arrests, James fought for his life and was determined not to give up. Seven days before Mother’s Day James opened his eyes, however he was not responding to us, we were told that his brain injury was so significant that he would be in a vegetative state and it’s likely that he would not emerge from this state. James stayed in ICU until 31st March where he would step down to a High Dependency Unit (HDU), he would remain on this ward until he was transferred to The Children’s Trust in August 2021. During this period of being in HDU, James suffered a brain storming episode where his brain effectively shut down and began to rewire its self, unfortunately, in the process of this James’ limbs became dystonic and physically appeared deformed, he lost a shocking amount of weight and fell below 6 stone. 

 Over the summer months James began to emerge slowly from this vegetative state, he had many days of great lows but had some extraordinary highs, for example, one Friday night I video called the family as I was James’ bed side and I played music and we had a party, as much as James was not verbally responding I knew he was participating in his own way. Music for James was his therapy, this is what helped him reconnect with may things as he recovered. James could not eat or drink, he began to sample sips of water only five months into his hospital admission, he was fed via an intravenous line and a feeding tube that was inserted into his stomach, which we are hopeful will be removed this year. When James was transferred to The Children’s Trust (TCT) this was a great milestone as the day he was leaving Kings College Hospital he began to stick his tongue out, I remember the brain injury specialist saying that these were the signs to look out for any chance of minimal recovery. During James time at TCT, we saw great improvement he began to speak, and began to eat again although it was small amounts he took pleasure in achieving these milestones. For his 18th Birthday he said “Mum” for the first time.

This was the start of James remembering how to speak and say a sentence. The Occupational Therapist team and Physiotherapy team, taught James how to move his limbs again, even though he was still severely dystonic James had movement in all his limbs and he showed determination to utilise his limbs whatever way possible. With a great deal of support James learned to sit up and also to move a football to the therapists, due to James turning 18 he had to leave The Children’s Trust and was then transferred to The Royal Hospital for Neurodisability in December 2021. The physiotherapists, occupational therapist and the medical teams really pushed James in his recovery and we saw James’ confidence and ability to try to do more in his sessions increase. James re-learned to write his name, he participated in singing lessons which helped his speech. James re-learned to cook, something which he thoroughly enjoyed. The care we received in all of the hospitals that James stayed in was excellent, and I cannot thank the health care assistants, nurses and doctors enough. James was eventually discharged in May this year.

 He spent a total of 449 days in hospital and of that 174 days in a trauma hospital. I was told that James would not survive past 24hrs of admission, I knew that he would. I refused to believe that James would have “died” for an hour, have his heart re-started at the roadside, go though hours of life saving surgery, to not survive. I was informed that James’ recovery looked bleak and he would not be the boy who we once knew, he would not remember who we are, he would not remember himself and the recovery would be a very slow process, fortunately James has defied the odds. Due to James severe hypoxic brain injury and severe dystonia, this has left James with total loss of mobility he is a wheelchair user he has difficulties with speech (oral dyspraxia) however every day we see signs of improvement. James’ recovery has been miraculous and he continues to defy the odds

James’ mum ,is his full time carer and said “never in a million years I would have thought I would be living like this , The impact of knife violence is devastating and I urge those who use knives / weapons to harm or kill to stop, I plead with you to stop! James was just doing what he loved, simply taking his mums bike out for a test ride when he was set upon by a group in an unproved attack. This should not have happened. I want to thank the London Air Ambulance team , you have given me a second chance at life with my Son”

I'm Abseiling to help save lives in London

London’s Air Ambulance is the charity that delivers an advanced trauma team to London’s most seriously injured patients. Your donation will help save more lives by keeping the helicopter in the air and the rapid response cars on the road, ready for when they are needed most. By providing intervention as quickly as possible after injury, London’s Air Ambulance Charity aims to give patients the best chance of survival, and best quality of life, after trauma.

I will be abseiling from the home of London's Air Ambulance Charity one the 17th Floor of The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel. Please give what you can to help save lives in London.