The grieving family of a young dad who tragically died months before his 30th birthday has vowed to 'never forget' the team of hospital staff who cared for him in his final days.
Joseph McGowan from Port Glasgow suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to the Inverclyde Royal Hospital before being transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley.
The 29-year-old's mum AnneMarie said she and Joseph’s dad John Ross endured days of worry as ICU staff assessed his condition. However, after a week, the couple received the news that their son would not survive and that from then on he would receive end-of-life care.
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Joseph's loved ones were able to spend 11 days with him before he died.
AnneMarie said: "The care our son received was wonderful – I’ll never forget what they did for him. There was a nurse by his side all the time, and they were so good to us – so understanding.”
AnneMarie and John Ross were so grateful for the care the RAH gave to Joseph that they decided to raise money for the hospital. Instead of sending flowers, they asked that mourners donated money to the hospital and were able to raise £505.
The mum added: "A little while later, nine of Joseph’s friends walked the West Highland to raise even more money, and I’m so proud that they raised nearly £3000.”
Joseph’s brother Jamie and AnneMarie’s friend Eleanor Leitch then arranged a charity birthday party in memory of Joseph with his two young sons, Ronin and Isaac, the guests of honour who were allowed to stay up late to go.
“So many people came,” AnneMarie said. “I’m so grateful to Jamie and Eleanor, and to our friend Carine Hagan who baked a lovely cake for the event – in fact I’d like to thank everyone who donated raffle prizes and made the night such a success, and all the people who dipped their hands into their pockets and gave money for the hospital.
“We felt it was important that the boys went. By being at the party they were able to say happy birthday to their daddy.”
“The boys don’t really understand what’s happened. All they know is that their daddy is in heaven.
"They’re so young that they won’t remember any of this, but we want them to know about the people at the hospital who helped their daddy – and about everyone who helped the hospital in return. We hope the pictures we’ve taken today will help us do that.
“The staff in our hospitals don’t get enough credit. They did so much for Joseph that we’ll just can’t thank them enough. We just wanted to give something back.
“We’d like to thank Dr Patrick MacGoey, Consultant in General Surgery and Intensive Care Medicine, who was so kind to us when he told us that Joseph wouldn’t make it, and who arranged for him to be moved to Ward 24, and all the staff on that ward.
“But we’d especially like to thank Dr David Gray, Consultant in Palliative Care, and the end of life team – and all the others who helped us.
"We’ll never forget them – and we just want to make sure Ronin and Isaac never forget them too.”
After accepting the donation, which will be shared between the ICU, Ward 24 and the Palliative Care team, John Hunter, Senior Charge Nurse at the RAH ICU, thanked the McGowans for their generosity.
He said: "I was delighted to accept this generous donation on behalf of the teams that cared for Joseph and so pleased that we could be part of something so special that Isaac and Ronin will remember.
“I think healthcare professionals sometimes feel a bit awkward when it comes to accepting donations but we humbly accept that families often wish to do this in recognition of our service and in memory of loved ones that are no longer with us. My sincere thanks go out to the McGowan family and all their friends who helped to raise this magnificent donation."
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