A surgeon at Airedale Hospital is working with Rotary clubs in Ilkley Wharfedale and Bangalore to support medics in India as they deal with the overwhelming numbers of coronavirus patients. Mr Raj Rao, a consultant surgeon at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust who is originally from Bangalore, has set up a GoFundMe page with the aim of raising £250,000 to buy essential medical equipment such as pulse oximeters, oxygen concentrators and CPAP machines. Typically, a pulse oximeter costs around £50, an oxygen concentrator around £2000 and a CPAP machine around £1000. “I have lost a number of my own close relatives to Covid and I know many others have lost their near and dear ones too due to lack of proper advice and timely access to medical care,” explains Mr Rao.
A SURGEON at Airedale Hospital is working with Rotary clubs in Ilkley Wharfedale and Bangalore to support medics in India as they deal with the overwhelming numbers of coronavirus patients. Mr Raj Rao, a consultant surgeon at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust who is originally from Bangalore, has set up a GoFundMe page with the aim of raising £250,000 to buy essential medical equipment such as pulse oximeters, oxygen concentrators and CPAP machines. Typically, a pulse oximeter costs around £50, an oxygen concentrator around £2000 and a CPAP machine around £1000. “I have lost a number of my own close relatives to Covid and I know many others have lost their near and dear ones too due to lack of proper advice and timely access to medical care,” explains Mr Rao.
THE Rotary Club of Ilkley Wharfedale realises that many charities in the area have been starved of income since the middle of March resulting in them finding it difficult to continue maintaining the level of care that disadvantaged people have been relying upon. When one of the Club’s members decided she would like to do a sponsored slimathon, she requested that all of the money raised should go to Martin House. The lady was delighted with the support for the cause which has enabled the Rotary Club to present a cheque to Pam Ravenscroft of Ilkley Friends of Martin House for £1,100. Pamela Brunger, Secretary of Ilkley Friends of Martin House Children’s Hospice said: “Martin House has been supporting children and young people and their families from across North, East and West Yorkshire since 1987. The aim of Martin House is to provide family led care for children with life shortening conditions. It is a place of love and understanding, a peaceful place but one that can also h
NEARLY 90 local residents enjoyed a surprise Christmas treat, when volunteers from a local charity delivered the present of either a hamper or a potted plant to them in their homes. Organised by Ilkley and District Good Neighbours, the Christmas Parcel Project, which began some 25 years ago, has always brought an annual touch of seasonal good cheer to a number of the area’s older and less able residents; some of whom might feel lonely and isolated during the festive period. Ilkley Good Neighbours Trustee and Christmas Parcels Co-ordinator, Ed Duguid said: “At this particularly tough time for everyone and certainly for some of the older members of our community, we all agreed we had to find a way to deliver the annual Christmas Parcels and bring a smile to their faces.”