When Max Wilson set out to cut the grass on his smallholding recently, little did he realise he would end up in hospital after suffering an anaphylactic reaction.

On Tuesday, July 4th, Mr Wilson, a volunteer for the Bumble Bee Conservation Trust had a run in with their cousins. He runs a market garden and was mowing the grass under the fruit trees when he drove over a wasp’s nest.

The wasps stung his legs and arms and, although he knew he had been badly stung, he did not realise how serious the situation was. He suffered a slow allergic rection, which meant that he was able to get back to his house but, after about 20 minutes he was covered in hives, large blotches, his tongue and eyes were swelling and he felt very poorly.

Mr Wilson told the Gazette that he believes he felt so ill because his blood pressure had become very low. He told his partner that he thought he might be suffering from shock. She immediately took him to Ross Community Hospital, where Mr Wilson said: “The nursing staff at Ross Community Hospital saved my life!”

He said it took several members of staff to help him, he recalls he was given four shots of adrenaline and then he was eventually transferred to Hereford Hospital.

Mr Wilson was a mental health nurse and trained at University of Worcester.

One of the nurses involved in his care had also been a student at the University of Worcester and he said that made it feel as though they were part of a team.

He told the Ross Gazette that even though he had been told about anaphylactic shock during his training he had never seen it before. Mr Wilson was transferred to Hereford Hospital and kept in for observation. Although he has recovered well physically, he said it was also an emotional shock.

Mr Wilson is very grateful to the staff at Ross Community Hospital and thankful that Ross has its own hospital, he said if he had had to go to Hereford or Gloucester it might have taken too long.

Read Mr Wilson's letter, thanking the nursing staff at Ross Hospital here