Boy, two, rushed to Sheffield Children’s Hospital with potentially life-threatening illness

Little Jacob O’Neill suddenly fell ill while his worried grandmother was looking after him for his parents. But within hours there were concerns he was in danger of losing his young life.

His dad rushed home after hearing from Jacob's concerned gran and decided straight away to take him to the doctors near his home. When the doctors saw him they were worried. Realising that he was an emergency case, they sent him to the city’s children’s hospital for critical care.

Dad Chris said: “He was a very healthy two-year-old boy. He did everything you’d expect of a boy his age. One Monday, he was being looked after by his grandmother and she called my wife to say he wasn’t very well.

“I rushed home from work and I could see instantly something wasn’t right. He was very lethargic and pale, and had just been sick before I arrived to pick him up. I knew instantly that we needed to take him to the doctors straight away.

“Within 24 hours, Jacob went from being completely healthy to almost losing his life.”

The doctors who initially saw the youngster, who lives in Mansfield, North Nottinghamshire, originally called for an ambulance to take Jacob to his local hospital. But then his condition quickly deteriorated and it was decided that he should instead be rushed to Sheffield Children’s Hospital for emergency care instead.

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“Shortly before leaving in the ambulance, he needed to be revived. Given the seriousness of his condition, neither myself nor my wife were able to travel with him as the medical staff were looking after him in the ambulance. We jumped in the car to Sheffield Children’s Hospital,” said Chris.

What are malrotation and volvulus?

Jacob was taken into the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PCCU) at the children’s hospital and was quickly diagnosed with malrotation and volvulus. Malrotation is an abnormality of the bowel, which happens while the baby is still developing in the mother’s womb.

Volvulus is a complication of the malrotation which can happen when the bowel twists. It means that the blood supply to that part of the bowel is cut off, which can be life-threatening to the baby. Both conditions are far more likely to be diagnosed within days of birth.

Chris now firmly believes the doctors at the hospital in Sheffield saved his son’s life. He added: “Had they not diagnosed Jacob as quickly as they did and completed the surgery so quickly, it is likely he wouldn’t be with us today. I didn’t eat or sleep for the next three days. We were tired, distraught and upset.”

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To save Jacob’s life, all but 5cm of his small intestine and a third of his large intestine was removed, beginning a five month stay at Sheffield Children’s Hospital, as his family adapted to feeding him by what is called total parenteral nutrition (TPN). This is when fluids are given into a vein to provide most of the nutrients the body needs.

Chris said it was a difficult time, but Sheffield Children’s Hospital literally became the family’s home. While they knew that his life was always going to be different, he describes parts of their stay as ‘quite wonderful’. And he said the driving force behind it all was how utterly amazing the Ward One team were.

He said: “I cannot understate how incredible every single nurse, doctor and member of the support team were – the care and attention they gave to our little boy was incredible. It’s a strange thing to say when you’ve been stuck in hospital for five months, but it was in many ways a nice experience and we’ve got many fond memories.

“At Sheffield Children’s, everyone was there for the cause. It wasn’t below anyone to make sure he was comfortable and supported, and to make sure myself and my wife Louise had what we needed. You never felt in the way or uncomfortable and everyone had Jacob’s best interests at heart.”

Jacob, who is now aged five, went home in September 2019 but has since returned to Sheffield Children’s several times for short stays lasting up to five days. He was placed on the transplant list in March 2020, just as the world was going into the first COVID-19 lockdown.

Birmingham hospital bowel transplant

Six months later, his family received the news that he would be transferred to Birmingham for a bowel transplant that would allow him to eat and drink normally once again. He is now back at school, swims, plays sport and loves walking the family dog too.

To say thank you, his family and friends have now recreated Jacob’s journey with a gruelling 95-mile mountain bike ride between Sheffield Children’s Hospital and Birmingham, to raise £1,845 for The Children’s Hospital Charity.

It involved more than 6,000ft of elevation and took more than 10 hours. The team have described the challenge as ‘brutal’, but with the help of their support vehicle driver Richard, energy bars and Welsh cakes they made it through.

Chris said: “Jacob’s journey was even more challenging than we had anticipated, but just like the staff at Sheffield Children’s did during his treatment, we surrounded each other with positivity.”

You can support the Jacob’s journey fundraising here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/chris-o-neill15

For more information on The Children’s Hospital Charity, contact Daniel Robinson on 0114 321 2479 or [email protected]