Help improve Jakes quality of life
Donation protected
Hi my name is Deborah Regan my son Jacob Clift is a 28 year old family man from Armadale Western Australia where he has lived his whole life.Jacob played football for the Armadale football club he is supportive and loving father to his two girls Willow and Matilda.
On the 26th of December Jake woke up in the morning with what he assumed was Gastro; he slept most of the day and woke up later that night having a fit and fainting twice. His condition then began to rapidly deteriorate. Jake became extremely confused and disorientated and by the time an ambulance arrived his lips were blue. In the 5-minute trip to the hospital he started to develop a deep purple rash and by the time he got to the emergency room his organs began to fail and he was immediately put on life support.
Jake was diagnosed with Meningococcal (W Strain), Bacterial Meningitis and Septicaemia. His family were told he wouldn’t make it through the night. Remarkably, Jake did make it through the night however, at this stage he was in an induced coma, his liver and kidneys had failed, an artery in his heart was not pumping blood, his lungs had collapsed and his legs, arms, nose and ears were turning black from a lack of oxygen. His chance of survival was 5%.
Jake kept fighting for his life and whilst still in a coma in Armadale Hospital he was transferred to Royal Perth Hospital. On the 5th of January Jake woke to his family for the first time since his nightmare began. Jakes condition slowly began improving day by day however he was still in a very critical condition. His kidneys and liver had been attacked by the infection and he remained in ICU. Jake continued to defy the odds stacked against him and his condition slowly improved.
In February, Jake was transferred to Fiona Stanley Hospital where he would undergo the next step in his journey. Whilst the meningococcal virus was no longer in Jakes system the damage had been done. He began to undergo a series of long painful surgeries in which both his hands and legs were amputated 15cm below the knee. The surgeons would need to space out the operations and Jake required many skin grafts for his surgeries, lost all the skin on his legs and endured countless trips to dialysis to filter his blood.
Thankfully Jake recently had his last operation and his road to recovery can finally start to begin. Jacob has shown an enormous amount of courage, determination and resilience. He has defied all odds and as a father to two beautiful girls he has showed them what true strength really is.
Jakes new journey in life is just beginning and he has many struggles ahead of him. Jakes family are now facing the reality of having him home in the coming months and he will begin his rehabilitation phase. They will face significant expenses over the coming years and to help with his recovery, Jacob’s family will require a specialised vehicle in which he can drive his wheelchair onto. We will aalso need modifications made to Jacobs home there are many things that Jacob will need to make his new life as comfortable as possible Any donations will go a long way to help improve Jakes quality of life.
Most importantly Jacob wants to spread awareness about this life threatening disease and urges everybody, no matter what age, to stay up to date with his or her vaccinations. A large percentage of Australians are not vaccinated against the new strains of Meningococcal and it is vital that you make an appointment with your GP and get the vaccinations as soon as possible.
On the 26th of December Jake woke up in the morning with what he assumed was Gastro; he slept most of the day and woke up later that night having a fit and fainting twice. His condition then began to rapidly deteriorate. Jake became extremely confused and disorientated and by the time an ambulance arrived his lips were blue. In the 5-minute trip to the hospital he started to develop a deep purple rash and by the time he got to the emergency room his organs began to fail and he was immediately put on life support.
Jake was diagnosed with Meningococcal (W Strain), Bacterial Meningitis and Septicaemia. His family were told he wouldn’t make it through the night. Remarkably, Jake did make it through the night however, at this stage he was in an induced coma, his liver and kidneys had failed, an artery in his heart was not pumping blood, his lungs had collapsed and his legs, arms, nose and ears were turning black from a lack of oxygen. His chance of survival was 5%.
Jake kept fighting for his life and whilst still in a coma in Armadale Hospital he was transferred to Royal Perth Hospital. On the 5th of January Jake woke to his family for the first time since his nightmare began. Jakes condition slowly began improving day by day however he was still in a very critical condition. His kidneys and liver had been attacked by the infection and he remained in ICU. Jake continued to defy the odds stacked against him and his condition slowly improved.
In February, Jake was transferred to Fiona Stanley Hospital where he would undergo the next step in his journey. Whilst the meningococcal virus was no longer in Jakes system the damage had been done. He began to undergo a series of long painful surgeries in which both his hands and legs were amputated 15cm below the knee. The surgeons would need to space out the operations and Jake required many skin grafts for his surgeries, lost all the skin on his legs and endured countless trips to dialysis to filter his blood.
Thankfully Jake recently had his last operation and his road to recovery can finally start to begin. Jacob has shown an enormous amount of courage, determination and resilience. He has defied all odds and as a father to two beautiful girls he has showed them what true strength really is.
Jakes new journey in life is just beginning and he has many struggles ahead of him. Jakes family are now facing the reality of having him home in the coming months and he will begin his rehabilitation phase. They will face significant expenses over the coming years and to help with his recovery, Jacob’s family will require a specialised vehicle in which he can drive his wheelchair onto. We will aalso need modifications made to Jacobs home there are many things that Jacob will need to make his new life as comfortable as possible Any donations will go a long way to help improve Jakes quality of life.
Most importantly Jacob wants to spread awareness about this life threatening disease and urges everybody, no matter what age, to stay up to date with his or her vaccinations. A large percentage of Australians are not vaccinated against the new strains of Meningococcal and it is vital that you make an appointment with your GP and get the vaccinations as soon as possible.
Organizer
Debbie Regan
Organizer
Wattleup WA
