My Nephew Thomas was born on 6th June 2019 at 11am he was a healthy 81b 1oz.

Both his parents Ed and Sarah knew that he had a congenital heart condition that was discovered at their 20 week scan.

Thomas was delivered by C-Section at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, Mum did not get to hold or touch her little boy and saw him for only a matter of seconds as he was wheeled off to ICU. He was then taken to the Royal Brompton Hospital by ambulance with Dad on-board.

That day he had a balloon procedure, 2 days later Mum was discharged from Chelsea and Westminster and allowed to travel to the Royal Brompton (where both parents will stay until he is allowed to come home). Mum was then reunited with Thomas and allowed a very precious cuddle.

On Thomas's 6th day he had open heart surgery that lasted 8 hours, time felt like infinity for Auntie so I can't imagine how it felt for Mum and Dad. He had a tricky time post surgery with 2 clots and a bleed in his chest. Scarily they also left his chest open for a number of days with only a dressing to cover his chest and tiny heart. He continues to improve daily and we can't wait to have him home. He remains in paediatric intensive care unit as I write. I've seen many things in my 10+ years with the NHS but never have I seen so many tubes and wires coming off one little person.

It has been a very tense and emotional time for my family but the experiences that Ed and Sarah have had to date, demonstrate the NHS at its very best.

Ed and Sarah have met other parents in similar situations on the wards and amongst my friendship group other parents and their families have experienced similar conditions. This sort of scenario happens more often than you think, congential heart disease (a general term for a range of birth defects that affect the normal way the heart works), affects up to 8 in every 1,000 babies born in the UK.

I will be running 10km on 22nd September 2019 at Goodwood, this will not be easy for me. The furthest I have run is about 8km in my 20's and I am fast approaching my 40's! I have dodgy knees and am a single parent whose support network lives 60 miles away. I also work 2 jobs so training opportunities will be limited.

I would be so grateful for your support in recognising the great job that the Royal Brompton Hospital does in particular PICU and Rose ward. Please, any donations would be warmly appreciated in order to support the good work that this hospital has done to save the life of my gorgeous Nephew Thomas and for the future lives of other precious babies.

Many thanks xxxxx

ps 100% of donations go to the hospital through this site Anna Hayes