9 Dec 2022
On Monday 9 June 2020, Leon and his partner Sarah had just finished their dinner and were relaxing on the sofa – a normal Monday night in their flat in Wembley.
Five months pregnant with their first child at the time, Sarah will never forget that evening.
“It was 19:34 and we were watching Normal People on BBC, I remember everything about that night. Leon was a little tired because he’d done a big cycle ride the day before – about 80 miles – but he often did that with his friends, nothing was out of the ordinary.”
While relaxing watching telly, Leon’s leg started hurting. “I thought he had cramp from his cycle,” said Sarah. “But then I looked over at him and saw he was in a lot more trouble.”
Leon had gone into cardiac arrest.
“I realised he couldn’t breathe, so I loosened his belt, took off his glasses and called 999. The emergency services explained how to perform CPR, which I began – we’re so lucky I wasn’t too pregnant to be able to do it.”
For four minutes Sarah performed CPR on Leon – following instructions given to her over the phone until the first London Ambulance Service (LAS) paramedic arrived. Given how unwell Leon was, more paramedics were dispatched and together they were able restart Leon’s heart by shocking him.
Although Leon’s heart had resumed beating, he was still severely unwell. His breathing was not effective, and his oxygenation levels were very low. The LAS paramedics requested the dispatch of London’s Air Ambulance’s advanced trauma team. Upon arrival, after assessing Leon, the team placed him in an induced coma to take over his breathing and optimise his oxygenation.
London’s Air Ambulance’s Lead Clinician, Dr Anna Dobbie, was one of the individuals working on Leon. She said: “When we first assessed Leon, we were really worried about his airway and his level of consciousness. All I wanted to do was tell Sarah that everything was going to be okay, but I couldn't do that.”
“I remember watching and standing over them as they worked on Leon,” said Sarah. “I had to try and remain calm.
“They were looking after Leon, so all I could do was look after the baby. I remember thinking if he was going to die, I wasn’t going to let her die too.”
Leon was then taken to his local hospital, Northwick Park. “I was able to follow Leon in the ambulance and remained in the family room waiting for updates. Dr Cosmo provided me with as much information as he could, but it was at the height of COVID-19 and everyone was in PPE and I wasn’t allowed to see Leon. At 01:00 I was advised to go home to get some rest. I remember re-entering our flat, it was like a murder scene.”
Dr Cosmo Scurr is now a Consultant with London’s Air Ambulance. He told us: “That night I was working at Northwick Park Hospital and there when Leon arrived. We spent all night stabilising his heart and breathing, but as he continued to deteriorate we managed to move him to a cardio thoracic hospital for ECMO – cardiac support – which is what he really needed.”
Leon’s cardiac arrest had been caused by the inflammation of his heart, a consequence of a virus. He had no pre-existing conditions.
Leon was transferred to Harefield Hospital, where he remained in a coma on the high intensity ward for three weeks. That was only the beginning of his stay in hospital.
“Because of the pandemic, throughout his three months in hospital, I wasn’t able to see him. That was the hardest thing, not being able to be with him when we had no idea if he was going to pull through.
“I always tried to stay calm, to look after the baby. That was the only thing I could control throughout that time – looking after her. She got me through the whole process, all those months without Leon.” Thankfully, Leon awoke from his coma.
“The first thing he said to me when the tracheostomy tube was taken out was ‘I’m going to do everything I can to be there for the birth’.”
“He was very taken aback by how much he had missed – for him my stomach had grown from five months pregnant to nearly eight within a few days. That was quite difficult for Leon to process. He felt hugely guilty and believed he had failed me, not being able to be there for me whilst I was pregnant.”
With determination – fuelled by the innate want to meet his first-born baby – Leon grew stronger and stronger.
On 12 August 2020, Leon was discharged from hospital and able to finally go home. “He had lost a lot of weight and his strong athletic build, but we continued the recovery process and started rebuilding him back.”
On 10 October 2020, against the odds, baby Georgie was born in Exeter with both parents present.
“It was a real pinch-me moment,” said Sarah. “I remember previously looking at him and thinking don’t you die, don’t leave me with this baby on my own, you have to be a dad for her. And now he is here. He is thriving.”
Two years on, Leon is back on his bike.
“He still struggles with the idea that his heart might fail him again, although the medical professionals say he’s stronger than ever. At the moment he’s having CBT to help him talk about things and process it all. It’s all about building up his confidence again to trust his body. But he’s here, with us.”
Dr Anna Dobbie said: “It was an awful night for Sarah and Leon, which is just one of the reasons why Leon's remarkable recovery means so much to us all.”
To add to the good news, the couple recently announced they’re expecting a second baby!
“We’re really looking forward to having a normal pregnancy – hopefully! I’m so happy he can do the journey with me from start to finish this time around.
“My children are lucky to have a father. We’re lucky I was there to start CPR and we’re lucky Georgie hadn’t been born and didn’t witness it.
“We are also lucky that the air ambulance team were available to attend to Leon so quickly.”
“I’m so thankful.”
Leon, Sarah, Georgie now live in Bristol, enjoying family days at the park and out on the bike.
We’re thrilled Leon has made such a positive recovery and their family is whole and at home, in time for Christmas 2022.