Liam Kavanagh kicked of his 2021 by setting himself quite the challenge! Liam is running 5km every day for 50 days to support the Children’s departments across University Hospitals Birmingham.

Liam started running at the beginning of 2020 to help lose weight, but before that had never ran more than a couple of times over the duration of a week. Liam is now taking on the challenge of running 5km every single day for 50 days, which will result in a grand total of 250km! The challenge started for Liam on 10 January, and he will be running up until February 28, all with the aim of raising awareness and giving back to the Children's Wards and Paediatric Units at University Hospitals Birmingham.

When asked why he chose this challenge, Liam said: “I wanted to have a challenge that was an endurance event rather than a one off. I needed something to motivate me to get my fitness levels back on track and I hope choosing a 50-day period will show positive results at the end. I also believe choosing this challenge will help me provide awareness of exactly what the NHS do and specifically the Paediatric Department at UHB. By sharing my progress on social media each day, I hope to engage more people and share the achievements of the trust.”

University Hospitals Birmingham Charity support younger patients and children in a variety of ways. In 2018, UHB Charity launched a £950,000 Children’s appeal across Solihull Hospital, Heartlands Hospital and Good Hope Hospital sites. The aim of the appeal was to transform the children's areas across the three hospitals so that visiting children feel as comfortable as possible, minimising stress for their parents and the staff who treat them.

Thanks to the many generous donations received, UHB Charity have funded a complete refurbishment of the Children’s Outpatients Department at Good Hope Hospital, renovations to the new Paediatric Day Surgery Unit at Heartlands Hospital, and a Children’s garden and play area at Heartlands Hospital. The charity continues to raise funds to help transform our Children’s departments across the trust, to make them brighter and more child friendly.

Liam also has a friend who works in the Children’s Departments at University Hospitals Birmingham and after hearing of the work and challenges staff members have undertaken during the last 12 months, Liam wanted to help in any way possible. With the money Liam raises, he hopes to provide an improved working environment along with supporting all the children who vitally need their help.

Amee Denyer-Smith, Senior Practice Development Nurse at University Hospitals Birmingham, said: “A huge thank you to Liam Kavanagh for choosing to support UHB Paediatrics and UHB Charity. Our teams work tirelessly to support children and families who access services across our trust, we are dedicated to delivering compassionate healthcare to children age 0-16 years. The renovations at our Heartlands Hospitals and Good Hope Hospitals Children’s departments will make a huge difference to the experience our children and their families have and it will help make their time with us more comfortable. It is such a worthy cause, and we will all support you Liam!”

To support Liam, visit his JustGiving page here or if Liam has inspired you to take on your own challenge, why not check out University Hospitals Birmingham Charity’s Challenge34 on our website?

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