Desperate Yorkshire mum's plea to doctors after son's operation cancelled for third time

A DESPERATE mum has pleaded with doctors to operate on her son after he had his procedure cancelled for a third time.
Preston and mum Laura at home in Stannigton as he waits for surgeryPreston and mum Laura at home in Stannigton as he waits for surgery
Preston and mum Laura at home in Stannigton as he waits for surgery

Laura Pickering’s son Preston, aged 11, of Stannington, has an unknown condition which affects his central nervous system and was pencilled in for an operation at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.

His condition has left him severely disabled. He is now wheelchair bound and unable to communicate properly. Doctors said they needed to operate to find out more about Preston’s condition and alleviate some of the problems.

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But on three occasions, his mother Laura, 30, said doctors told her they couldn’t carry out the procedure because there wasn’t a high dependency unit bed available.

She said: “It’s got to a point where I’m constantly ringing up the hospital asking if there is a bed available for enough time for his operation.”

Sally Shearer, director of nursing and quality at Sheffield Children’s Hospital said: “The safety of patients is our number one priority and we would not go ahead with a procedure if we could not guarantee them the high quality aftercare they need to recover.”