A Nottingham charity is appealing for donations to help treat the 1,000 sick new-born babies cared for every year at the QMC.
The Tiny Babies Appeal is raising money for the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which aims to give babies the best possible start in life.
It also provides support to parents and families, some of whom spend months by the hospital bedsides of their poorly newborn children.
Among babies currently on the unit at the QMC is Cecilia, who was rushed to the ward for specialist treatment before her parents even had chance to hold her.
Cecilia’s parents Lauren Dale and Sean Cann have not left hospital for five weeks
Her father, Sean Cann, said: “It was a race against time for the team to get her onto the machine and revive her after they lost her for a short period.
“She went on the machine for 48 hours and it was touch and go whether she would survive.
“Thankfully they got the repair done and put things back in place, and she’s just gone from strength to strength after that.”
Both Mr Cann and Cecilia’s mum, Lauren Dale, have not left the ward since the birth five weeks ago.
Ms Dale, said: “We’ve been told by members of staff there’s been around five babies that are above and beyond miracles.
“They must have seen a lot of babies and Cecilia is one of the top cases, so she really is a miracle.”
Like many parents in a similar situation, the couple have been staying at the hospital in special accommodation provided for those who need to be close to their baby.
The hospital provides special facilities for parents who want to stay with their babies 24/7
Ward manager Cara Hobby, said: “It can be emotionally demanding on the parents as well as physically demanding.
“To be by their baby’s cot side 24/7 is a lot, so by having these areas that the parents can go to we’re looking after their well-being as well as the baby’s.
“It gives them time-out without meaning that they have to go too far from their babies.”
Because demand on staff and facilities is higher than ever before, the unit is in need of more funding to support its specialist equipment and care.
Consultant Stephen Wardle, said: “We see more babies that are born extremely prematurely, and those babies have better survival rates and stay in Neonatal for longer – but this creates a huge workload for us.
“We also see lots of other babies with complex problems, particularly problems that require surgery in the new-born period.”
He added: “This higher demand means more babies, so more equipment and specialist care is required.”
Of the 10,000 babies born in the East Midlands every year, ten per cent of them, or 1,000 tiny babies, will need life-saving support. The majority of this number will be treated on the specialist wards at Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre and City hospitals.
More information about the Tiny Babies Appeal, including how to donate is available on the appeal website.
