Tragedy couple help baby unit
AHEARTBROKEN couple are trying to do something positive with their grief - by helping buy new equipment for the neonatal unit which cared for their tragic son.
Ingrid and Andy PlattChance from Offerton enjoyed 25 precious days with their son Freddie, who was born with a range of serious health problems.
Despite the efforts of nurses and doctors St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester, the newborn lost his fight for life on January 13.
His mum and dad are now hoping to raise £5,000 for new equipment at the hospital’s 59 cot-space unit - as well as support its bereavement team.
Ingrid and Andy knew during her pregnancy that their son was fighting the odds to survive.
Specialists decided his best chance was to be delivered by c-section seven weeks early, and he was rushed immediately to the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
He was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, multiple cysts in his lungs, and persistent swelling and fluid throughout his body.
Ingrid said: “Every day the NICU team would work tirelessly to help Freddie survive and find answers. Freddie had everyone fighting for him.”
Andy, 33, said that although doctors had seen Freddie’s problems and conditions before, they had never come across them all in the same child at the same time.
He added: “Every time he suffered, it would take the nurse a long time to stabilise him, and we realised that there was little if nothing else that could be done for him.
“We told the doctor that the next time he showed us he couldn’t fight to let him go.
“It was an incredibly painful decision that no parent should ever have to make but we had to put our own feelings aside and do what was right for Freddie.”
After Freddie passed away, his family were able to take him into a special room at the hospital where they could dress him and spend time together as a family.
Andy described the bereavement service as fantastic, saying the support they received during that difficult time was ‘invaluable’.
A GoFundMe page was launched on Tuesday last week. The family hope to continue raising money in Freddie’s memory with future fundraising events. To support their campaign, visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ ingrid-platt-chance.