TODAY the Adver is calling on its readers to help GWH in its bid to buy five new baby incubators.

The hospital must raise £1,000 a day this week if it is to hit a £175,000 target by Christmas.

Great Western Hospital is £28,000 away from reaching its appeal target and this week has a chance to close that gap.

Hospital charity Brighter Futures needs to raise £7,500 by midday next Tuesday if it is to win match funding from grant-givers the Dr Thomas Cranston Wilson Charitable Trust and the Reed Foundation.

READ: 'Baby Thomas was our Christmas miracle'

Now, the Adver is asking readers to dig deep and lend their weight to the campaign. If everyone in the town gave just 15p, the hospital could reach its target by Christmas Day.

The five new state-of-the-art incubators will be used on the special care baby unit at GWH. SCBU currently has 10 incubators in which to care for the 450 patients that pass through the unit every year.

 

Mum Aime with her daughter, born months premature at SCBU. Picture: DAVE COX

'That final push'

GWH has raised £147,000 since the appeal was launched in March.

Catherine Newman, head of Brighter Futures, urged Swindon to get behind a final push to get the appeal to its £175,000 target by Christmas.

“We just need that little final push,” she said. “This appeal is about giving our tiniest patients a chance. Our littlest patients don’t have a voice. They can’t speak for themselves, we’re speaking for them.

“Our parents go through so much. Birth is meant to be one of the most amazing occasions in your life. But for a lot of our parents they feel so helpless.

“These babies in SCBU are so tiny and so fragile. It’s incredible what they team do upstairs in SCBU. It’s like they work miracles everyday.”

 

The new incubator. Picture: THOMAS KELSEY

Nikki Taylor, interim ward manager on SCBU, said: “If any babies are going to be born premature in Swindon, they’ll be admitted to this unit.

“These incubators are all going to be for their benefit. They will bring mother and baby closer together.

“I’d love to think we would hit the appeal target by Christmas.”

What's so special about the Babyleo incubator?

Midwives and doctors have chosen a new incubator model called the Babyleo made by German firm Drager. The incubators have heated cushions and huge holes in the side walls to allow mothers to cradle their premature babies.

They also feature an iPod dock so parents can play the sound of their voice or favourite music through speakers built into the incubators.

Neonatal consultant Dr Sarah Bates said: “These incubators use the very latest technology to help the neonatal team give our very smallest and sickest babies the best chance at a healthy future.

“Evidence shows that having close contact with parents early on is very beneficial and these incubators support that in a very special way.”

Our appeal to Swindon

Adver editor Pete Gavan said: “This is a fantastic appeal and the money raised will help some of the town’s sickest babies.

“Every year around 450 prematurely-born youngsters are cared for on the special care baby unit. Over the years the Adver has featured hundreds of inspiring stories of babies who were never expected to live beyond.

“For every parent their child’s first day at school is an occasion and a memory to be treasured.

“For many parents of babies born premature and cared for by the midwives at SCBU, it’s another little miracle.

“Swindon’s generosity knows no bounds.

“This Christmas we should all throw our weight behind GWH’s bid to buy five new cribs for the town’s most vulnerable children.”

How can I help?

To donate to the SCBU incubator appeal, call Brighter Futures on 01793 605631 or visit: www.brighterfuturesgwh.nhs.uk/biggive.

Are you fundraising for the appeal or have you been supported by the midwives at SCBU? Get in touch. Call the newsdesk on 01793 501806 or email newsdesk@swindonadvertiser.co.uk.