David Ross at the Whittington where doctors found he had pneumonia in both lungs and his body was in septic shock

A FATHER from Finsbury Park who survived pneumonia and septic shock is running a marathon to raise money for the hospital that saved his life.

Last March, 37-year-old David Ross returned from a work trip to India feeling unwell, and rapidly deteriorated over the next few days.

When he went to the Whittington’s A&E, doctors found he had pneumonia in both lungs and his body was in septic shock – a life-threatening condition where the immune system overwhelms the body, blood pressure collapses and organs begin to fail.

“I was coughing all the time, and it was the worst I’d ever felt,” Mr Ross told the Tribune, adding: “My brother-in-law is a doctor, and he told me I should go to hospital. I resisted initially, but I was coughing and peeing blood – it felt like my body was shutting down.”

Mr Ross was moved to intensive care and put on a ventilator – all while his partner was 37 weeks pregnant.

“I asked the consultant what my survival odds were, and he said 60/40,” said Mr Ross, who counts himself “really lucky” that medical staff recognised quickly what was wrong with him.

“I was massively helped knowing that I was going to be a dad in a few weeks,” he added.

Mr Ross with son Ari

Indeed, it was only a week and a half after leaving hospital himself that Mr Ross was back at the Whittington for the birth of his son, Ari.

“I found one of the nurses that helped me and gave him a present. He told me that he thought I was going to die,” he said.

Mr Ross took up Couch to 5k as part of his rehabilitation last summer and, at first, even a one-minute run was exhausting – when he first left hospital, just walking across the room left him out of breath.

But in April, just over a year since his illness, he will run the London Marathon and has raised nearly £3,000 for the Whittington’s charity in the process.

“Our NHS is under pressure and I want to do what I can to help – and also for my baby boy,” he said.

“When he grows up, I want him to know that, although you can’t stop bad things happening to you, you can still try and turn them into something good.”

Mr Ross added: “When you’re at your lowest the smallest acts of kindness make a big difference, like someone bringing you a glass of water, or helping wipe your face, or just sitting to talk. My family, friends, and colleagues were all amazing. And most of all, the staff at the Whittington – I’ll never forget the care and the kindness they gave.”

The Whittington’s CEO Selina Douglas, who is supporting Mr Ross’s efforts, said it is “deeply inspiring” not only to see patients recover, but go on to achieve extraordinary things.

• Support David Ross’s fundraiser here: https://tinyurl.com/david-ross