BETTER: Jack Wright FROM being just four months old Jack Wright was plagued by an eye condition which caused him great pain and his mother anxiety.

For Jack, who will be two in March, suffered with a recurrent stye on his left eye which swiftly transferred to the right .

His mum Bianca was advised on many occasions to take matters into her own hands.

Old wives tales abounded and Bianca was told rubbing wedding rings on the affected area, placing used tea bags on the inflammation and even rubbing an old wet nappy would put an end to Jack's suffering.

Referring instead to the medical profession, Bianca who lives on Chorley New Road, took Jack to the family doctor and after different creams failed to improve Jack's condition he was referred to the eye unit at the Royal Bolton Hospital .

After an appointment with consultant Simon Wallis, Bianca was told Jack would have to wait several months before he could undergo surgery to relieve the blockage in a gland in the left eye which was causing the styes to appear.

"Because the left eye was sore and irritable he kept rubbing it," explained Bianca.

"When he rubbed it, it was transferring the infection from one eye to the other and making matters much worse," she added.

To ease Jack's suffering Mr Wallis, once a general anaesthetic had been administered, nicked the eyelid so the infection could be drained from it.

"This is a very simple procedure,' explained Mr Wallis "In adults we use just a local anaesthetic, but in children who have to use a general.

"Although the procedure itself is a simple one, having a child go in to hospital and have an anaesthetic causes a great deal of anxiety.

"I'm just pleased that this child's mother was pleased with the service we gave and the procedure was such a success," he added.

A general anaesthetic had to be given, hence the wait before surgery could be performed. As a rule babies under 18 months old aren't given a general anaesthetic. "As you can imagine,' said Bianca "there was no way Jack was letting any one near his eye, but the staff on the unit were absolutely brilliant.

"When it came to the actual operation they distracted him and made him feel heaps better.

"They were with him all the time, before the op, during it and afterwards. Everyone really looked after him," she added.

Now with Jack approaching his second birthday Bianca can only look back with admiration and respect on the staff and the unit which gave her son so much.

It is such dedication and strong emphasis on close relations between patients and medical staff, which has resulted today in the unit being awarded the Charter Mark for service and standards.

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