"The care of my child by PMH Burns Unit"

My young child arrived at the PMH Burns Unit four days after a terrible and traumatic burns accident overseas whereby they had burns to 80% of their body. As you can imagine they were in a terrible way and so too was our family. We did not know what the future would hold and whether my child would survive and we were devastated.

There are no words to describe the help and support the Burns Unit led by Professor Fiona and Tanya, head nursing consultant, gave us but I am going to try.

During those first 2 months when we had a family member at the hospital by my child's bedside 24/7 – that team were there with us every step of the way. The care and love they showed my child was so genuine and authentic. They protected them and were absolutely driven to get them through it. No question from us was too stupid. The medical team taught us about infection, about burns and scars and how they are treated. They showed such patience with my child and our family. When we were frustrated they understood and listened. When we were scared about the future they provided comfort and further understanding. Their knowledge and experience in burns management was so deep, extensive and advanced when it came to new technology. The medical team left no stone unturned when it came to trying different strategies to manage the debilitating infections that hampered my child's recovery. It also wasn’t just about the burns – it was about my child’s physical and mental development and rehabilitation. They were so long in bed they had to learn to walk again and balance and get their arms above their head. The physio team, the occupational therapists, the play therapists, the nurses and doctors, the cleaners – they were all fantastic.

They worked so hard to get my child to the point when they could leave hospital for the Christmas period for day trips home. They celebrated with us when my child became an outpatient and was wheeled out in their chair and they continue to care for my child as an outpatient.

As only a yound child could say – ‘I love my doctors at PMH because they fixed me! ’ When my child goes to their appointments now they run down the corridor and confidently screams out ‘hi’ to them and hugs their favourites – Tanya being head of the list and ‘Aunty’ Cheng, their favourite Physio. We have a long way to travel with their rehabilitation and scar management but they have made such promising progress. Nearly 6 months ago my child was fighting for their life and I entrusted this absolutely incredible team with my child and boy did they deliver in so many ways. They do such an incredible job under very difficult, complex and sensitive circumstances. This team and PMH have my family’s full support. Thank you