George was born with Craniosynostosis, which causes the plates of bone that make up the skull to fuse together before the brain is fully formed. If left untreated, it can lead to serious complications which can affect children developmentally and cosmetically.
So, just a few weeks after his first birthday, George underwent eight hours of skull reconstruction surgery at King’s in order to give his brain room to grow.
“That was such a tough time for our little family,” says Josh. “The surgery was successful, but we faced many challenges on an hourly and daily basis from his breathing deteriorating, the morphine not being enough to keep him comfortable and his head becoming very swollen."
“If that had been me, I’d have been in hospital for weeks recovering but within five days he was up and running around the hospital. To be honest, he humbles me massively.”
The happy, healthy three-year-old is now fully recovered and requires no further treatment but Josh and his wife Chloe will never forget the care their son received.
“The Neurosurgery department of Dr. Bentley and Dr. Chandler were absolutely amazing from start to finish,” says Josh.
“During our stay at King's we spent time on Lion Ward and in the Thomas Cook Children’s Critical Care Centre unit and all the staff were brilliant and so supportive."
On October 3rd, Josh was one of four King's College Hospital Charity supporters running for Team King's at the 2021 Virgin Money London Marathon.
He raised over £2,400 through a number of events and activities throughout the summer, with support from family and friends and his local football club.
“I’m so pleased to be able to give something back, help raise awareness about George’s condition and tell people just how good the hospital is,” says Josh.
“I play football regularly but I’d never done anything of this scale before. This is a big step up but I followed the London Marathon training guide and built myself up gradually with regular runs.
“George helped with my training too – he’s constantly got me running round the garden after him, and up and down the house!
