Elliott’s story: After care with the Burns Unit

Looking at him now, it’s hard to believe that nine year old Elliott has ever needed our support and care for a burns injury at Sheffield Children’s.

When he was just 15 months old, Elliott was at his grandmother’s house when a kettle was accidentally knocked over and spilled onto him.

At Sheffield Children’s, it was found that Elliott was scalded on his right foot and leg from the boiling water and needed a skin graft as part of his care here.

Now his mum Rachel wants to help raise awareness of how easy it can be for children and young people to get hurt.

Rachel said: “Most people don’t realise how easy it is for a child to be scolded by water, they’re always climbing on things and it’s so easy for them to knock over hot drinks so please put them higher up then you think they need to be.

“When we arrived at Sheffield Children’s we were immediately sent to the Burns Unit, who were incredible from the get go. We were fully informed of everything that was happening every step of the way. The nurses there took the time to explain procedures to us and tended to Elliott quickly and efficiently.”

Some injuries run a little deeper than the initial accident and – despite the time which had passed since his accident – Elliott and his family received continuing support because of the psychological impact that the burn had on them.

Rachel added: “Once Elliott was discharged from the Burns Unit we saw the Occupational Therapy Team for quite some time, Lena was incredible with us there. She was fantastic with Elliott and managed to talk me down when I was worrying too much – she couldn’t do enough to help.

“All the staff looking after us made us feel at ease in such a stressful time, which I didn’t think was possible. My personal wellbeing was also a big concern for them and they made sure to check how I was doing when checking in on Elliott too! I can’t thank them enough for everything they did for us.”

Thank you Rachel and Elliott for helping raise awareness about burns injuries and for sharing your story.