School’s defibrillator on hand, just in case
JAIMIN Armstrong may be one of only about 20,000 children born each year with a rare heart condition, but much to his disgust, that does not get him off doing the dishes each day.
The 14yearold King’s High School pupil was born with tricuspid atresia — a serious congenital heart condition which means he has no right ventricle.
The defect occurs during prenatal development, when the heart does not develop fully, and it means his heart and lungs are unable to properly oxygenate blood in his body.
By the time he was 4, he had had two openheart surgeries to increase the amount of blood picking up oxygen from his lungs.
Most people with the condition do not reach adulthood, but doctors have told Jaimin the second operation would get him there.
‘‘It’s a rare condition, but that still doesn’t get me off doing the dishes.
‘‘I don’t get any special treatment from my parents.’’
But it does get him a little special treatment from his school.
Knowing he has a serious condition which could cause his heart to stop at any time, the school has bought a $3000 defibrillator — just in case.
In the past year, he has had a number of episodes when he has overexerted himself.
It makes him feel dizzy and out-of-breath, and because of his diagnosis it was difficult to know what would happen when he got into that state.
There was a possibility his heart could stop, he said.
‘‘I don’t know what it’s like to have a normal heart.
‘‘This is my life. It’s all I’ve ever known. I just work with what I’ve got.
‘‘But it does play on my mind a lot, that I might overdo it at school and something might happen.’’
Jaimin said it gave him comfort to know there was a defibrillator on school grounds if he needed it.
School business manager Chris Farry said the defibrillator was bought with money raised by the school and a grant from the Bendigo Trust.
It would also be available to anyone else in the community who needed it.
‘‘It’s something I hope we never have to use.
‘‘Anyone who’s here, anyone walking past the school, anyone on the football ground on the weekend — everybody will have the ability to use it. It’s there for that reason.’’
This week, Jaimin and his family are supporting @Heart New Zealand fundraising in Dunedin, to help the organisation continue its support service for children with congenital heart defects and their families.
john.lewis@odt.co.nz
❛This is my life. It’s all I’ve ever known. I just work with what I’ve got❜