Kiran helps patient’s wedding wish

Date of release: 2 November 2023

Getting to the church on time took on a whole new meaning when a compassionate Pharmacist enabled a patient to attend his grandson’s wedding before returning to hospital.

Gurdev and his wife Sawarn Kaur showering the happy couple with confetti at the wedding

Retired bus driver Gurdev Singh, 75, has suffered with bronchiectasis – a long-term condition where the airways become widened – for 15 years.

The father of four feared missing his grandson’s big day as he lay in a New Cross Hospital bed after struggling for breath as the clock ticked down towards the wedding of grandson Amrit Chahal, 26, and fiancée Lauren, 24, in Stone, Staffordshire.

Gurdev, from Willenhall, was on critical intravenous antibiotics (IV) at the time which meant he was unable to leave hospital.

He had two options - to go home on an elastomeric device that delivers the antibiotics while he attended the wedding, or miss the ceremony and stay in hospital. Failure to continue the course could have resulted in his condition deteriorating.

The problem arose when the suppliers of these devices were unable to make the supply in time for the big day. Kiran Salhan, Lead Clinical Pharmacist: Respiratory Medicine at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, came to the rescue, however, by scouring various hospitals to source a device to continue his treatment.

“We were asked to locate an elastomeric device in time for the wedding” said Kiran, who is based at New Cross.

“It was a question of whether we could source a device, as our normal suppliers were unable to deliver in time. These devices have a short expiry date, therefore we do not routinely keep any in stock.

“The grandson’s wedding was on the Friday at 11am and the earliest we could get some was Saturday at 2pm.

“I called other hospitals in the region then I managed to speak to someone from the Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Treatment team at Stoke who were able to supply us with one device.

“The schedule was very tight because the device didn’t come in until Thursday afternoon. I worked with my Respiratory Nurse colleagues to arrange for the supply to be available and ready for them to see him on the ward at 8.30am the day of the wedding to fit the device.

“It was a race against the clock but we managed it. Gurdev was able to have day leave and attend the wedding.”

Kiran was proud of playing her part in helping to make a special memory for the whole family.

“It was a big achievement which gave me a lot of job satisfaction. I put myself in the grandson’s shoes and asked myself ‘what would I do to have my grandparents at my wedding?’

“As a Pharmacist you do have to source medications from elsewhere, so you develop a habit of ringing around and that definitely kicked in and helped.”

Gurdev was delighted to be there for the big day, and was able to greet the happy couple by showering them with confetti, joined by his wife of 57 years Sawarn Kaur, 76.

“It was a great moment for me to be there because I very much wanted to be there and I’d been worried that I wouldn’t be able to go,” said Gurdev, who has five grandchildren.

“Thanks to the efforts of the staff, I went out for the day and they arranged for me to take my medication with me through the device. I’m very grateful to them and I want to thank them very much. It made me very happy.

“Everyone was so pleased to see me at the wedding – especially my grandson. That was the greatest gift to me.”

ENDS

• For further information, please call Tim Nash on 07714 741097 or email tim.nash2@nhs.net