Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

As many of you will know, our second daughter Evie was born 10 weeks early at just 30 weeks gestation weighing 2lb 15oz. This was the scariest time of our lifes, a time when we couldn’t control the situation and a time when we had to put our child’s life in the hands of others. 

Evie was born in respirtory distress due to the immaturity of her lungs and was whisked off the the Starlight Neonatal unit, where she was provided with support breathing, an incubator to regulate temperature, fluids, a feeding tube, scans and much more. We spent a total of 5 weeks on the unit and Evie is now thriving and was able to go home at just 35 weeks, a real trooper and in our opinion, something that was only possible because of the care provided on Starlight.

We had ups and downs, as many people who have experienced the nicu will tell you, one step forward can be followed by 10 steps back. We each spent the majority of the day and evening at the hospital, by Evie’s incubator, then her heated cot and finally were able to move into a private room to care for our baby for the last two weeks of her admission. Starlight is the only Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the UK to provide parents the facility to spend 24 hours per day with their baby,, this is an absolutely amazing provision for both parents and baby. 

The nurses, doctors and support staff were amazing, dedicated to the babies and extremely supportive of parents. 

What struck us was the unbelievably complex nature of Neonatal medicine, not only the intricate skills required but also the risk of infection which could mean life or death for a premature or sick baby. Equipment on the unit is in some cases pioneering but in other cases is in very short supply, this is where the Accuvein comes in.

The Accuvein machine allows the easy viewing of veins to help insert cannulas in children and those with hard to find veins.

This is one of the most exciting new products in recent times. AccuVein is the most effective way to find veins up to 10mm depth in the most difficult patients. It is already in use in over 4000 hospitals worldwide and is starting to be recognised within UK hospitals. It can be used in many specialties from neonatal care units to cancer units, operating theatres, bariatric surgery centres and phlebotomy labs. This most versatile product has uses in the training of clinicians and emergency medicine as well.

How does this help?
§ Provides clear location of veins

§ Reduces stress in emergencies

§ Reduces infection due to accuracy as research shows that 70% of hospital acquired infections come from multiple attempts to access the venous system of patients. AccuVein could become one of the most important infection prevention products in use today.

Each unit is £4,710 and just one will make a huge difference!

I will be running various events and initiatives to raise money for this amazing cause over the next few months. So please, if you can, please donate generously!

Many thanks, 

David