The family of a Nottinghamshire man who died after suffering a bleed on the brain have visited the care unit that tried to save him and awarded it £20,000 in his memory.
Luke Blackbourn’s family presented a cheque to the Adult Intensive Care Unit at the Queen’s Medical Centre on Thursday (March 15) and spent time talking with the staff.
Two years ago, Luke, who was 23, suffered a rare Arteriovenous Malformation, meaning his brain began internally bleeding.
After being taken to the hospital he later died, despite the efforts of medics.
His mother Paula said: “We wanted there to be a long lasting legacy and to give something back to the Adult Intensive Care Unit just to show how grateful we were for the treatment and dedication of the staff who obviously tried to save him but unfortunately weren’t able to.”
The family say they looked into supporting other charities, but wanted to help the unit that treated Luke in his final moments.
“Luke spent his last few hours here” said Ian. “We wanted it to be more local and finish up with equipment that would be in memory of Luke and help others.”
The family also had a chance to see some of the specialist equipment that the money raised will fund.
A Nasendoscope allows staff to examine the airways of a patient to see how well they can swallow. It would have been used to rehabilitate Luke if he had survived.
Luke, from Eastwood, was an avid Forest supporter and regularly went to matches with friends and family.
Luke’s stepfather Ian said: “He had a vibrant social life, you couldn’t pin him down.
“You couldn’t shut him up. He was very bubbly, very bubbly. He would light up a room.”
