Burns patient raises money from his hospital bed

Barden Winkle, who received burns to 25% of his body following an incident with an outdoor chimenea, has raised a fantastic £1,214 for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Charity following his fundraising efforts.

Whilst attempting to relight a chimenea fire with a container of nitromethane, Barden was severely burnt following an explosion as the vapours in the container caught fire. Barden was admitted to QEHB following the incident and spent 25 days in the hospital, which included three operations and three skin grafts to help repair the damage done to his skin.

Whilst in hospital, Barden decided to do something to raise money for the hospital that was treating him, saying: "I had lots of friends who were keen to do something to help me out. I thought, instead of getting them to bring me grapes I will ask them to donate to the hospital where I was being treated."

Barden was treated on Critical Care Unit A before being transferred to the Burns Unit. Barden said: "I would like to say a massive thank you to everyone in the Burns Unit and Critical Care Unit A, who all helped save my life and guided me on the road to recovery.

"Special thanks go to the Burns Unit who looked after me so well in my darkest days, they were all very friendly and I received excellent medical care throughout my time in hospital. I hope that the money raised helps to further improve the environment for patients and research to further enhance the already excellent care."

Liz Shale, Ward Manager of the Burns Unit, said: "Everyone on the Burns Unit would like to thank Barden and his friends and family for raising such an amazing amount of money to support our work. QEHB Charity has supported the centre in making improvements to our treatment rooms, supporting additional staff training and development, and improving burns prevention strategies.

"We have had over 250 burns admissions over the past year, with over 1,000 more patients treated on the ward as day patients. The QEHB Burns Centre covers the whole Midlands, from Lincolnshire to Herefordshire, which equates to around 20% of the population of England. I am proud to work in such a brilliant centre, and Barden's fundraising will help to make the care we offer to patients even better."

Senior Fundraiser at QEHB Charity, Rachel Learmonth, said: "Barden's story is truly inspirational. To have raised so much money whilst still being in hospital is incredible,the money he has raised will help the Charity to provide 'added extras' for the burns unit that are over and above that which the NHS can provide.

You can help to provide 'added extras' for staff, patients and their families at QEHB today by clicking here.