Dad-of-two Terry McIntryre has brought Christmas forward for staff at the Royal Preston Hospital to thank them for the life-saving treatment he received from them in August and for the support they gave his family, which means he and his family are now able to enjoy another festive season together.
Terry has donated £1,250 to Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Charity (LTHC) for staff welfare projects and a further £3,750, which LTHC will use to buy new furniture for Bowland House, the hospital’s on-site guest house, where families can stay free of charge to be close to their loved ones, who are receiving treatment. Terry’s daughter Grainne, who along with her sister Rosie, spent 10 nights in Bowland House has also set up a monthly standing order to help support improvements to the facility moving forwards.
Terry was rushed by ambulance to the Royal Preston Hospital’s Critical Care Unit from Chorley’s Travelodge. He and Grainne had been planning to over-night in Chorley after Terry became too unwell to continue the seven-hour drive from Stranraer ferry port in Scotland to Terry’s Hertfordshire home.
Dad and daughter had been on a last minute mini-break to Ireland, where Terry’s parents come from. They had decided to cut it short so Terry could visit his consultant at London’s Royal Free Hospital, who had recently diagnosed him with a rare auto-immune condition, Myasthenia Gravis, which causes extreme fatigue and muscle weakness.
Terry spent the next 14 days being looked after on the Critical Care Unit, followed by a further six nights on the Bleasdale Neurology Ward. Terry, who runs his own luxury coach and minibus hire company, said: “I was admitted in the early hours of the Friday morning, but I don’t remember anything until the Monday. I was intubated and re-intubated three times while on Critical Care with staff literally saving my life.
“I went into Myasthenia Gravis Crisis brought on by having contracted Legionella Pneumonia, which I didn’t know I had. I had visited Grainne, who works as a transportation consultant in Dubia, a couple of weeks earlier. Towards the end of my stay, I began feeling unwell, which I put down to my Myasthenia Gravis, which I am still getting used to, but the consultant in Preston told me that’s where I had most likely contracted Legionnaire’s Disease.
Terry continued: “As I wasn’t well, Grainne had flown back to London with me and we had decided on the Ireland trip. Even though Grainne was doing the driving from Scotland, I just had to stop but now I think how lucky I was as the staff at Preston couldn’t have been better. I was looked after so expertly and so well.
“Beyond their exceptional clinical expertise, the compassion of the staff really stood out to me. Every doctor, nurse, healthcare assistant and member of the wider team showed an extraordinary level of kindness, patience and empathy. They treated me with dignity when I was at my most vulnerable and supported my family with the same care they gave me. Their friendliness and calm reassurance, even in the most critical moments, is something I will never forget.”
Terry added: “My daughters spent the full three weeks in Preston with me. Being able to stay in Bowland House made things so much easier for them.”
Bowland House, which opened in 2011, has 18 en suite rooms. Last year, it gave families like Terry’s 3,558 overnight stays. Each stay costs around £30 a night with half of the bill being funded by donation and half by Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. LTHC supports Bowland House by regularly upgrading its facilities. Since 2021, LTHC has spent £1,302 on new TVs, £10,726 replacing room door locks, £1,431 on fridges, £1,031 on new bedding and £911 on new towels.
LTHC fundraiser Lucy Clark said: “We are absolutely delighted that Terry is now well and that he and his family had such a positive experience at the Royal Preston Hospital. We know before they left, they gave many of the staff thank you cards and gifts so to receive this additional support is so generous of them. We are extremely touched and grateful.”
To find out more about Bowland House and how to support it, click here