Thank you for visiting Katy's fundraising page. This is her story...
I went into labour on 13th June at 41 weeks and we were on our way to hospital when she was born (at the side of the road on top of Sutton Bank!) She was a footling breech presentation (Google it if you're curious), which caused complications and she was deprived of oxygen for a significant period of time. By the time she was born, at 12:45, the ambulance and air ambulance had arrived. She wasn't breathing but they resuscitated her and established a weak heartbeat before taking her to hospital with Tony in the helicopter, me following by road.
She spent some time being ventilated in A&E before being transferred to the Neonatal Unit at James Cook University Hospital. There it was established that her blood was very acidic, because of trauma from lack of oxygen, and that both her kidneys and brain were badly damaged, although her heart and lungs seemed OK. A process of 'active cooling' was begun, where the body is cooled right down to focus all the body's healing attention on the brain. However, by midnight it was clear from her brain trace that she had been severely brain damaged, and her kidneys had failed completely. After a long discussion with the wonderful neonatal consultant, Dr Wyllie, we decided that further intensive care was unlikely to improve Katy's outcome, and all agreed to redirect efforts towards palliative care.
She did not suffer, as there were indications that there was no higher brain function. But her body fought on for a further 12 hours after she was taken off all the machines, giving us the precious chance to spend the night with our newborn, taking it in turns to cuddle her, change her nappy, feed her (through a tube) and take her for walks. She slipped away from us in the memorial garden at James Cook, in her daddy's arms, with the sun on her face.
The medical professionals did everything in their power to try to help her, they were honest with us, guided us and supported us through tough decisions, and have continued to care for us in the weeks since she died. In Katy's memory we therefore want to raise some money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and the Neonatal Unit at James Cook Hospital. Ideally we would like donations to be split equally between these two organisations (there is a separate donation page for each charity), but of course that is up to you.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details will not be shared with any third parties and you won't be sent unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. They'll make sure Gift Aid (an additional 25%) is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer, too.
Thank you for your friendship and support,
Sarah Reece
