First Children’s Ambulance is a ‘blessing’: Tyrone mum

A TYRONE woman whose son was born with congenital heart disease has praised the North’s first bespoke children’s ambulance as an “absolute blessing”.

Roberta Donnelly’s two-year-old son, Reuben, is one of around 200 children born with the condition every year in Northern Ireland. In his short life, he has travelled to Dublin a number of times for treatment and surgery.

According to statistics from the Northern Ireland Specialist Transport and Retrieval (NISTAR), 123 trips were made to or from Dublin for children needing cardiac treatment or surgery in the last 12 months – 87 per-cent of these were made by children under the age of one, with the remaining journeys made by children and young people aged between one and 16-years-old.

After a hugely-successful ‘Mile A Day’ fundraising campaign in 2021 in which over £133,000 was raised by the public for the Children’s Heartbeat Trust, the £126,466 bespoke ambulance was commissioned by the charity and the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, with support from the Northern Ireland Specialist Transport and Retrieval (NISTAR) service.

Speaking about the ambulance and her son’s diagnosis, the Coagh woman said, “Reuben received an antenatal diagnosis of single ventricular physiology which saw us travelling to Dublin a few times for treatment and then again for surgery in 2021.”

Stress

“His condition affects every aspect of his life and adds a lot of extra stress as a parent as it’s constantly at the back of my mind. Reuben tires a lot easier than other children his age and he is more prone to seasonal illnesses and viruses due to his added vulnerability.

“The new children’s ambulance is an absolute blessing for families that are making the trip to Dublin for hospital treatment.

“The fact that it has a sensory focus is so important as it means there will be plenty to distract children from what can be a stressful, daunting and worrying journey.

“I would like to sincerely thank Children’s Heartbeat Trust, NIAS and NISTAR for providing families located across Northern Ireland with a life-changing and much-needed service.”

As well as being fully equipped with the latest specialist medical equipment, the ambulance has a number of features including space-themed décor on the interior walls, sensory equipment to calm younger children and PlayStation and Tablet facilities for entertainment.

ADAPTED

The ambulance is also adapted with wheelchair tracks, enabling older children to make the journey in a wheelchair as opposed to a trolley.

Supporting around 500 families every year, Joanne McCallister, chief executive of Children’s Heartbeat Trust, says that the ambulance will have a major impact on the families assisted by the charity.

“Through our work, we’ve seen first-hand just how stressful travelling backwards and forwards to hospital with a very sick child can be for families. It is a very traumatic time for both children and parents, who often have to take time off work to care for their child which can lead to financial pressures, especially in the current economic climate,” Joanne said.

“Children’s Heartbeat Trust already supports families via a number of services and our main motivation behind the creation of the ambulance was wanting to make perhaps one the most frightening and difficult journeys that little bit easier.

“We hope that the interior look and feel of the ambulance, alongside all the entertainment features available, will put children and their parents at ease and take their minds off the hospital treatment ahead.”

l To find out more about the work of Children’s Heartbeat Trust, visit www.childrensheartbeattrust.org.