West Midlands 'stoma cop' inspires fellow colitis patient to join force

A police officer who had his colon removed due to colitis has inspired another man with the condition to join the force.

PC Mark Woodcock, from West Midlands Police, underwent an ileostomy last year, but has since returned to work.

Sharing his experiences on social media, he inspired Luke Jemson, who was sworn-in as an officer in February.

The pair have now met for the first time as PC Woodcock showed PC Jemson the ropes on a traffic night shift.

PC Jemson said he had reached out on social media after he was forced to leave the Army in 2013, days after his diagnosis with ulcerative colitis - a chronic condition that leaves the colon and rectum inflamed.

"I was discharged from the Army just before I was meant to leave on my first deployment to Afghanistan, so it was really hard knowing that this diagnosis stopped me from doing what I had always wanted to do, which is why the support and encouragement from Mark to join the police has been amazing," he said.

He added meeting PC Woodcock in person had been "great".

The NHS said colitis affected about 146,000 people in the UK.

PC Woodcock, 33, from Leicester, said until the operation to remove his colon, he suffered bloody diarrhoea, constant fatigue, mouth ulcers and swollen joints.

West Midlands Police bought a specialist titanium armour plate to protect his stoma bag following the procedure and allow him to return to front-line duties.

He started to tweet using the StomaCop handle in October to share his experiences.

"One of the reasons I set up this account was to normalise the condition and show it shouldn't stop people from doing what they love," PC Woodcock said.

"I was so lucky to have such supportive management and team around me, especially when I was having my stoma fitted.

"It's great that now I can pay this forward and support Luke in any way he needs since he has joined the force."

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: newsonline.westmidlands@bbc.co.uk