Aaron Clark and his wife. (Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust via SWNS)
By Ed Chatterton
A fit and healthy dad who thought he had a "nasty cold" was left in a 16-day coma and almost died after getting the flu.
Aaron Clark, 42, went from resting up in bed to being rushed to intensive care in the hospital with multi-organ failure in the space of just four days.
The garage owner spent more than two weeks in an induced coma at Kings Mill Hospital, in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Notts., and came terrifyingly close to dying.
Aaron, who was unvaccinated, was also on a ventilator to help his breathing and a dialysis machine as his kidneys were not working properly.
The dad-of-three, who has no underlying health conditions, has now vowed to get his first-ever flu jab and is urging others to do the same.
Aaron, of Sutton-in-Ashfield, said: “One of the first things I remember when I came round was a doctor saying to me ‘well done, we don’t have many people come back from as far as you did’.
“I had a really close call.
(Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust via SWNS)
“I’d never had the flu before – in fact I’d barely even had a cold and hadn’t needed to visit my GP since 2017.
“It was a shock just how serious it can be and how quickly everything escalated - from thinking I might stay in bed for a little while to being whisked off in an ambulance and put to sleep.
“It shocked a lot of my family, friends and colleagues when they heard that flu was the reason I’d been so unwell and out of action for four months."
Aaron began feeling unwell in December last year with cold-like symptoms but thought nothing more of it.
But after he went to his GP, his blood oxygen levels were found to be worryingly low at 72 per cent instead of the expected 95-100 per cent.
He added: “I felt not quite right on the Saturday. On Monday and Tuesday, I was in bed with what felt like flu symptoms.
"On the Wednesday I had what I thought was a rash on my skin, which prompted my partner Alix to ring 111 and they told me to go to the GP.
“When I got to the GP my blood oxygen levels were 72 percent.
"The reading was so low that the doctor tried three different monitors because they thought the equipment wasn’t working properly.
“Within a few hours, I went from thinking I had a nasty cold to being in an induced coma and on a ventilator in intensive care.
(Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust via SWNS)
"I didn’t appreciate how serious flu could be."
Ward leader Phaedra Kay, whose team cared for Aaron, said: “Aaron had multi-organ failure when he came to us and he was very seriously ill.
"He’s a fit and well gentleman normally and he developed a very serious type of flu, which can be extremely life-threatening for some patients.”
Respiratory consultant Dr. Mark Roberts added: "While influenza is a mild illness for most people, it can cause severe illness and can be life-threatening, especially in the elderly and others who are vulnerable.
"Having the vaccine often reduces symptoms if you are affected by the virus.
"The vaccine is very effective at preventing the spread of the virus within the community. This helps us to protect our patients and families.”
Flu vaccinations are free for those most at risk, including older adults, young children, pregnant women and people with certain health conditions.
They are available at GP Practices, community pharmacies and school vaccination services.
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