A Wrexham couple has personally thanked the ambulance crew who saved their son's life a day before his first birthday in an emotional reunion.

Natalie and Danny McCluskey shared their heartfelt appreciation for the Welsh Ambulance Service crew's swift response to their son Jackson's medical emergency.

According to Ms McCluskey, Jackson's health took a drastic turn for the worst unexpectedly.

She said: "On the morning before Jackson’s first birthday, he seemed a little lethargic and had a bit of a temperature but otherwise seemed fine."

Ms McCluskey added: "While I was in the card shop, Jackson became very sleepy and by the time we got back to the car, he had begun having a seizure.

"Jackson had never had a seizure before, and it was very scary to see him like that, so I immediately called 999 and explained what was happening."

Advanced Paramedic practitioner Ian Binnington from the Ambulance and Fire Services Resource Centre in Wrexham, alongside Health Board clinical lead Hannah Lowther, were on the scene in five minutes.

Describing his arrival, Mr Binnington said: "Jackson was still having convulsions and had been fitting continuously for several minutes.

"I initially administered a fast-acting anti-seizure medication but unfortunately, that didn’t stop Jackson’s seizures and at that point, I knew that things were really serious and called for back-up."

Running on their request, Alix Arendacz, an operational manager, rushed to provide support.

Detailing the gravity of Jackson's condition, Mr Arendacz said: "When the request came in, it was for ‘P1’ back-up, which is the highest level of back-up you can request so I knew that the situation was really serious and that Ian needed assistance as soon as possible.

“When I arrived, we performed a procedure where medication is administered directly into the patient’s bone.

Natalie and Danny McCluskey have thanked the ambulance crew who saved their son’s lifeNatalie and Danny McCluskey have thanked the ambulance crew who saved their son’s life (Image: Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust)

“I have to say that in all the years I’ve been a paramedic, Jackson is the first patient I have performed this procedure on while they are conscious, which shows just how serious his condition was."

Despite their efforts, Jackson's condition didn't improve, making it paramount to take him to the emergency department.

Mr Binnington said: "We pre-alerted the staff at Wrexham Maelor Hospital and advised them of Jackson’s condition and just three minutes later, we arrived to hand him over to a specialist team who were waiting for him."

At the hospital, Jackson's condition worsened to the point of respiratory arrest.

Describing the panic, Ms McCluskey said: "Up until that point, it hadn’t really hit me just how serious things were but when the emergency call went out for a crash team, and I saw them rush past me with the defibrillator I really began to panic.

“Ian was fantastic – he stayed with us the whole time and really went above and beyond to reassure us and to make sure we were kept informed."

Despite the critical situation, the medical team succeeded in resuscitating Jackson.

He was diagnosed with a collapsed left lung due to pneumonia, leading to a five-day hospital stay.

Jackson has since made a full recovery.

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Grateful for the life-saving efforts, Ms McCluskey expressed her thanks to the ambulance crew.

She said: "We never expected to spend his first birthday in hospital but we were just happy that he was alive and still with us.

“The staff on the baby unit at Wrexham Maelor were fantastic and really made an effort with us to celebrate his birthday.

“On a personal note, we would like to put on record our sincere thanks to Ian, Alix and Hannah as we believe it was their decisive actions and decision not to delay taking Jackson to the emergency department that ultimately saved his life.

“Ian even took the time to come back to the hospital the following day to check up on us which showed us just how much he genuinely cared.

“We will be forever grateful.”

Ms Lowther added: "I was delighted and relieved to hear that the timely, lifesaving interventions that we provided had such a positive outcome for Jackson and his family."