I was thrilled to see the Jewish Chronicle front page story about Camp Simcha mum Sarah Dafner who is trying to raise £300,000 to set up a hyperbaric chamber in Manchester.

We have been supporting the family since her son Tzvi suffered severe brain damage at just three months old, after contracting influenza and going into cardiac arrest. It left him unable to respond to stimuli, cortically blind, in constant pain and having seizures that lasted all day and night. It got to the point where Tzvi was spending 3 out of every 4 weeks in hospital due to infections and seizures.

We supported the family with night-time respite, a dedicated Family Liaison Officer, sibling support, parties and outings, hospital transport and many other services but life was unbelievably difficult for them. Then they started taking Tzvi to a hyperbaric oxygen chamber in Morecombe.

It was a 2-hour round trip – 5 hours including the treatment –  but the impact was worth it. After just 20 sessions Tzvi smiled for the first time in 3 years. His seizures decreased dramatically and over the course of treatments, his sight has also improved and he has also started responding vocally and interacting. His immune system, which was severely comprised by the pain medication, has also improved dramatically.

Our Family Liaison Officer has been to the chamber with Tzvi and his mum and seen first-hand how happy and relaxed he is there. Now Sarah is fundraising to set up a chamber in Manchester, one which can be used by the whole community because hyperbaric oxygen has been shown to help
so many conditions – Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Stroke patients, people having Chemotherapy, Heart issues – the list goes on.
If successful, what she is doing will make a huge difference not just to Tzvi and his family but to so many others.

We wish the family huge success with this fundraising campaign and hope the community will get behind them.

You can donate here

and read the full article here.