Family Services > Case studies > At home and in the community
At home and in the community
Jo Whitehead first heard about Rainbow Trust as she sat beside her baby son Connor in the intensive care unit of her local hospital. Connor, who has Down’s Syndrome, was born with heart problems and needed his first operation at just four months old. Two more operations followed, and several months in hospital. Read more about how Rainbow Trust supports Connor and his family.
Jo stayed with Connor throughout that time, willing him to make it through complications which included chronic lung disease, pneumonia and MRSA while her eldest son, Dylan, was looked after by his father, grandmother and friends. It was a worrying and difficult time for Jo, and the help of Family Support Worker Eleanor made a huge difference.
“Eleanor was there for us in so many ways,” Jo says. “She sat with Connor so that I could take breaks just to eat or have a shower. She brought Dylan to the hospital to see us, and took him for days out and she was there for me too.” Jo Whitehead, Connor’s Mum.
Connor is now five, and after numerous stays in hospital, another heart operation and two more bouts of pneumonia, his future is looking promising. Eleanor is still closely involved with the family. ”She’s been like a second Mum to me, and a good friend to us all.”
