Medics going on the run to help vulnerable children
A group of medics are going on the run to raise up to £15,000 for equipment to help vulnerable children attending their department at Wolverhampton’s New Cross Hospital.
Ten members of staff from A21 paediatric assessment unit at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust have signed up to the Great Birmingham Run on Sunday, May 1, setting up a GoFundMe page. Nine are running the 10k race and one is attempting the half marathon.
Ambra Righetti, trainee paediatric advanced nurse practitioner, had the idea to run the race to raise money to buy an ultrasound machine for the ward – and persuaded five paediatric consultants and four paediatric registrars to sign up.
The machine will help cannulate children - introducing a cannula or thin tube into a vein or body cavity - helping those in particular who visit often.
Originally from Italy, Ambra, 29, has worked at the trust since 2015 and now lives in Birmingham.
She said: “This is such a great opportunity to spend time with the amazing paediatrics team while raising money for a good cause and getting into shape.”
Ambra has been training for the race since January and is hoping to complete it in one hour, 45 minutes.
Dr Julie Brent, consultant paediatrician, is the only one of the group running the half marathon.
Dr Brent, who is from Birmingham and has worked on A21 for eight years, said: “I run every week, 8.5 miles but slowly, so decided I would do the half marathon instead as more of a challenge.”
Dr Brent, who also enjoys tennis, cycling and swimming, added: “I have run the half marathon twice before, around 10 years ago, but I’m that much older now I want to see if my body can still do it and if I can push myself to a quicker time.
“I’ve been running every week since start of lockdown. I can run a long way but I want to speed up. I am hoping to complete it in two hours.”
Keen all-round sportsman Dr Minoth Kanagaratnam, 36, has done one half marathon before, clocking two hours 26 minutes, plays football and badminton regularly and is a leading batsman with Hagley Cricket Club in the Worcestershire League.
Dr Kanagaratnam, who is married to consultant histo-pathologist Kalani Kuruppa, and father to a three-year-old daughter, said: “Many children who come here are from deprived backgrounds and we would like to buy an ultrasound machine to scan children and also enable us to put cannulas in for a longer duration. That would be fantastic.
“It’s also an opportunity for us as staff to bond outside of work and it’s a health-conscious activity. If people can spare any pennies to help us then great. It’s a ‘win win’.”
At 53, mother of three teenage boys Dr Karen Davies, consultant in general paediatrics and paediatric rheumatology, is the most senior of the group doing the race.
Dr Davies, who is married to James Cotton, interventional cardiologist at the trust, has worked in the department since 2003, specialising in paediatric rheumatology.
She’s been running for over 20 years, nowadays usually through the fields around her home in Bridgnorth with her two working cocker spaniels. Her other favourite current pastimes include cycling, sailing, cold-water swimming and trying to beat her family at Wordle.
Dr Davies said: “I want to do this for fun, to raise money, and because Ambra told me I had to and everyone does what Ambra asks!”
Running her first race is Dr Katie Shelley, paediatric registrar, 36. The mother of daughters aged three and six has worked on A21 since September 2020, but also previously in 2014.
Originally from Bristol and now living in Harborne, Birmingham, Dr Shelley completed the couch 2 5K running programme last year and has been training for the race since the autumn.
“I wanted to get fitter and support the ward,” she said. “But I’m such an un-sporty person – my family are amazed I’m doing this! I took up running after my children were born. I run at least twice a week or when I can.”
“My training is going OK – but going from five to 10k is much harder than nought to five km. I’m aiming for one hour 15 minutes.”
Also running the 10k are paediatric consultants Dr Ash Holt and Dr Kiran Sastry and paediatric registrars Dr Katie Crombie, Dr Shosh Layman and Dr Elke Reunis.
Starting and finishing in the city centre, the Great Birmingham Run 10k starts takes runners past the Bullring, along Pershore Road to Cannon Hill Park which marks the halfway point, before looping round Edgbaston Cricket Ground and past Calthorpe Park, before a final section through Digbeth.
Anyone who would like to donate to the fund should visit justgiving.com/fundraising/a21-childrens
