A YOUNG boy who was struck down by coronavirus which led to his organs starting to fail is finally back home with his family after eight days in hospital.
George Mitchell, 13, began complaining that he was feeling unwell last Monday as he had a high temperature but it wasn’t until the following day that he was taken to Barnsley Hospital.
Mum, Andrea Mitchell, 37, is a frontline worker at Valley Park Care Home, Wombwell so after making the initial 111 call on Monday she was advised that he may have coronavirus.
Andrea, of Doveside Drive, Darfield, told the Chronicle: “On Monday he did complain that he was feeling unwell, but things got worse on Tuesday as he wasn’t eating or drinking anything, so we took him into Barnsley Hospital.
“The staff there took his blood pressure and it was dangerously low, George was struggling to keep his head up and he was extremely lethargic.
“A chest x-ray was done and there was fluid around his lungs and his heart.
“Due to the protocol around the virus, when George was being transferred to the intensive care unit at Leeds we had to hand him over to the ambulance service who were absolutely fantastic with him,” Andrea added.
“George is on the autistic spectrum, so he’s extremely anxious about everything as it is, and being alone during this time was horrible for him.
“It was on Wednesday that the nurses at Leeds thought he may have to go onto a ventilator due to the seriousness of his condition, but he responded so well to all the treatment.
“He stayed in the ICU from Wednesday until Sunday, when he was moved to the children’s ward.”
George arrived back home on Wednesday night after recovering and is ‘shaken’ by what had happened but is going strong and is on the mend, according to his mum.
“His immune system tried to fight off the virus, which resulted in his organs beginning to fail this doesn’t usually happen with kids and there’s only been 20 cases of it in the UK,” she said.
“But he came home on Wednesday which was amazing and we’re so glad that he’s back.
“His dad obviously hadn’t seen him since he went into the hospital due to the measures put in place, so he was staying home with his sister Grace and brother Jack so it was amazing for him.
“It’s been a traumatic experience for all of us, but I’m so thankful for all of the staff on this journey we will forever be in debt to them.
“I think if we’d have left it a few more days we would have seen a different outcome.
“I’m so thankful for all of our friends and family too, they’ve been so supportive.
“The heartache we have gone through this week has been gut-wrenching and we would not wish it on our worst enemy.”
According to the latest figures, Barnsley had more than 280 cases and 129 people died from coronavirus between March 21 and May 10.
More than 2,500 residents have been helped with food parcels and almost 1,300 have signed up to become a community responder, helping socially isolated people to obtain vital items.
Julia Burrows, director of Public Health in Barnsley, said: “We know the virus has had a devastating impact on lots of people.
“I’m sure it’s clear to everyone that this is much more than a health crisis./ It’s a human, economic and social crisis, and we’re all experiencing and coping with the effects of coronavirus differently./
“During the dreadfulness of this pandemic, we’ve seen countless amazing examples of people and communities pulling together. It’s something that Barnsley is known for, and people have shown that.
“This community spirit will be a driving force behind moving Barnsley forward from coronavirus.”
