Fantastic Sailing day at Carsington Water for brave Izzy Askey

ILL and disabled children were all smiles as they took part in a sailing day organised by their doctors. Patients of the Royal Derby Hospital had the opportunity to test their skills in specially-designed boats. And 14-year-old Izzy Askey was particularly happy to be out on the water. She is believed to be the youngest person in the country suffering from Fowler's syndrome, a condition that affects the muscles in the bladder, usually in 20-to-30-year-old women. The disease often makes life very uncomfortable for Izzy, of Kilburn, but this was not the case at the Carsington Water event. And Izzy thanked her doctor – consultant paediatrician Richard Bowker – for making her feel well enough to go out and have fun with the other children. She said: "He's really caring and understanding and he really listens to me. "He helps me be in control of things." Izzy went through a long period of uncertainty when she first fell ill. "When I first went to hospital, they said it was so unusual to have this condition this young," she said. "So it was really hard for them to diagnose me." Izzy is due to undergo surgery at the University Hospital in London on Wednesday, which will involve putting an electrode into her spine. But the Sailability challenge offered her an opportunity to forget about it for a few hours and have some fun. She said: "We went out on the Jolly Roger but there was no wind so we had to be towed back. We had to paddle with oars for a bit to get back, it was fun." The event at Carsington Water was organised by Nottingham Children's Hospital consultant paediatrician David Thomas – a keen sailor – for the first time last year. This year, he has teamed up with the Royal Derby, Kings Mill Hospital, Chesterfield Royal Hospital and Sheffield Children's Hospital, as well as the charity WellChild, to give more children the opportunity to join in the fun. And the Royal Derby's Dr Bowker was pleased to see his patients out enjoying themselves. He said: "This is to get them away from the hospital environment and to get them doing normal things. "I think it will enhance our relationship with the patients seeing them out doing something they enjoy." Dr Bowker has been in his position at the hospital for eight years and has known some of the children for four of those. "This experience adds to the can-do attitude we are trying to inspire," he said. "It is also nice to see them outside of the hospital so that they are actually happy to see us." Many of the children involved in the days events suffer from neuromuscular diseases, which affect the nerves and muscles. Dr Thomas added: "Sailing has a lot to offer and different people take different things out of it, so for these kids it is fantastic."