Supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital

words: Jamie, Jade, Anneli and Eva West

At the recent SAIF AGM, National President Alun Tucker announced Great Ormond Street Hospital as his charity of the year.

Here fellow SAIF Member Jamie West, from West & Coe Funeral Directors, discusses his personal mission to support the fantastic and life-saving work Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) does. Jamie has pledged to raise £100,000 for GOSH after the hospital and staff saved his daughter’s life.

“It is a charity that sits in the hearts of so many people, but for your child to need access to the neonatal funded intensive care unit you appreciate first hand just how life changing the funds raised can be.

“Eva Jem West was born on 21 October 2017, but sadly the joy of welcoming her back to the family home was short lived as she was re-admitted to hospital at nine days old. After a worrisome few weeks, Eva was transferred to GOSH for further investigation.

“Within 24 hours they were able to diagnose Eva’s extremely rare h-type tracheoesophageal fistula (TOF), which is an abnormal connection between the airway and the food pipe. This meant as Eva swallowed milk small amounts would enter her lungs and without surgical repair she would not survive. This life-threatening condition affects one in 100,000 children – which is the target fundraising amount #teameva has chosen. TOFs often lead to severe and fatal pulmonary complications and just hours after being diagnosed things suddenly took a turn for the worse, as Eva’s lungs could no longer cope.

“Eva was admitted to intensive care – and our three-month rollercoaster began. To watch your child fight for their life is every bit as horrifying as you might dare to let yourself imagine, but through even the darkest moments we remained grateful for the world-class care Eva received.

“Eva was stable enough to have her operation on 19 December and she was finally able to come home on Valentine’s Day. Although Eva is still fed via a tube and will require special care for some time to come, we are forever grateful for the treatment she continues to receive and the wonderful opportunity of life that is ahead of her.

“So, to celebrate our incredible Eva and to extend our gratitude and thanks so that GOSH can continue to change the lives of other families with seriously ill children, we welcome you to support #teameva in whichever way you can.

“Thank you in advance for your contribution and keep in touch with our fundraising journey here.

“Though she be but little, she is fierce.”

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