Issue 31 - July 2009 | Archive
Sickle Cell Society’s awareness month
NHS Careers is highlighting the NHS staff helping patients suffering from Sickle Cell to mark the Sickle Cell Society’s awareness month in July and the society’s 30th anniversary in 2009. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the disease and those involved in its care. This year’s campaign follows the first ever World Sickle Cell Day on 19th June.
Sufferers can have bouts of extreme pain, which are called crises, and the disease can cause permanent damage to many different organs. Thanks to the support and care of NHS staff; most sufferers live a happy and fulfilling life.
Josephine has just turned one but six months ago she was in real danger. Yoruba, Josephine’s mum, noticed her daughter’s hands and feet were really swollen and she was crying a lot more then usual. She called NHS Direct, and spoke to Janice, a nurse at their call centre. After explaining the symptoms, Janice advised Yoruba to take Josephine straight to A&E.
She was seen by a Precious, a paediatric nurse, who noticed that her eyes seemed a little yellow, a sign of jaundice, and suspected that Josephine might be in Sickle Cell Crisis. After consultation with the A&E consultant and a paediatrician, Josephine was given pain relief and intravenous fluids, which seemed to help her and she was admitted to the children’s ward.
On the ward, a phlebotomist took some Josephine’s blood, and it was sent to a clinical haematologist in the hospital’s laboratory for diagnosis. As expected by the healthcare team, Josephine was suffering from Sickle Cell, but with the proper care, she was soon recovering from her crisis. The full impact of the disease on Josephine’s life was explained to Yoruba by the team, including a dietitian who explained that as Josephine gets older, she will need a diet rich in folic acids.
Before her release from hospital, an appointment was made for Josephine to attend a specialist Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia Centre in her area. At the centre, her care is managed by a team of healthcare professionals, including a community matron, who also makes regular visits to see Josephine at home, a consultant haematologist, nurses, a clinical psychologist, who helps Yoruba deal with the distress caused by Josephine’s condition, and social workers.
Six months later, Josephine is a happy one year old. Just like other children of her age, she is finding her feet and babbling her first few words. With support of the complete healthcare team, and management of her condition, Josephine will live a long and happy life.
Facts and statistics
- Sickle cell affects the red blood cells which contain a special protein called haemoglobin. The function of haemoglobin is to carry oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body.
- People with Sickle Cell Anaemia have Sickle haemoglobin (HbS). When sickle haemoglobin gives up its oxygen to the tissues, it sticks together to form long rods inside the red blood cells making these cells rigid and sickle-shaped. Normal red blood cells can bend and flex easily.
- The different kinds of Sickle Cell Disorders (SCD) are found mainly in people whose families come from Africa, the Caribbean, the Eastern Mediterranean, Middle East and Asia.
- In Britain SCD is most common in people of African and Caribbean descent (at least 1 in 10-40 have sickle cell trait and 1 in 60-200 have SCD).
- There are 250,000 people in the UK who are carriers of the sickle cell gene and up to 13,500 people have a sickle cell disorder - making it the most common inherited blood disorder in the country.
- About 350 babies are diagnosed with the disease every year.
