It was supposed to be a quiet August morning for Laura and her newborn Nash. Her fiancé Devon had returned to work and her first day home alone with their 12-day-old baby boy was to be spent cuddling together watching Olympics coverage on TV.

However, Nash was fussy and refused to feed, so Laura called Health Link for breastfeeding support. What she received instead was guidance that would help save his life.

Laura mentioned Nash’s lips looked slightly blue, which the nurse on the phone said could mean his oxygen was low. She advised Laura to call 911 for an ambulance to the Alberta Children’s Hospital. Just five minutes into the trip, horrified, Laura and the paramedics watched her baby turn grey. Then suddenly, she felt the ambulance speed faster and faster, sirens blaring.

A child’s condition can change from stable to life-threatening in minutes. Timely access to specialized medical intervention can mean the difference between life or death, complete recovery or disability. Supporters like you ensure kids have access to the best life-saving care at the Alberta Children’s Hospital when every minute counts.

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A team of Emergency doctors and nurses were already waiting for them when the ambulance arrived at the hospital. Nash was very sick, but it wasn’t clear why. Trauma experts worked fast to stabilize him, but his condition was worsening. He was put on a breathing machine and transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) where critical care specialists were concerned about his heart. Using ultrasound technology at his bedside they could see his heart was not squeezing well. Despite all medical interventions, they knew Nash could go into cardiac arrest at any moment. He was proactively put onto a CPR feedback machine that would help them provide the best quality CPR if that happened.

Nash’s best chance for survival was now Extracorporeal Life Support (ECLS). When a child is placed on life support, the highly skilled ECLS team works in perfect coordination to take over the function of the child’s heart and lungs using cutting-edge bypass technology that lets them rest and heal. ECLS was Nash’s only hope. And it was a race against time.

As the ECLS team got to work, Nash’s heart stopped.

Experts at the Alberta Children’s Hospital rely on supporters like you to equip them with the best tools and training when a child’s life is in their hands. Thanks to a generous donor who is matching donations, your gift today will have twice the life-saving impact for kids like Nash.

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The team immediately started chest compressions using the CPR feedback machine until they could safely get Nash onto ECLS.

When Laura and Devon saw their baby boy on life support, he was unrecognizable, but they were grateful his heart was getting a chance to recover.

World-class pediatric critical care experts at the Alberta Children’s Hospital saved Nash’s life that day. And so did highly specialized medical equipment available at the hospital because people like you cared to give. Point of care ultrasound, ECLS and the CPR feedback system – all these pieces helped hospital experts detect Nash’s heart issue and provide life-saving medical intervention when time was of the essence.

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Nash was diagnosed with supraventricular tachycardia, a fast, erratic heart rhythm that is treated with medication. And because his team had the specialized training, skills and tools to diagnose him and intervene quickly, he suffered no brain damage, which was a potential risk of ECLS.

Today, Nash is a happy, adorable and thriving seven-month-old. And while his heart condition is well-managed, he will continue to be cared for by cardiologists at the hospital. He is of 57 children who are alive today because the Alberta Children’s Hospital had ECLS available – 57 children who would not have survived without it.

Community support makes stories like Nash’s possible. Since the pandemic and increase in respiratory illnesses, the Alberta Children’s Hospital has been experiencing higher volumes of acutely ill children requiring care in its Emergency Department, PICU and inpatient units. Last December alone, the Emergency team cared for 1,000 more patients than their busiest month on record.

As children come to the hospital in larger numbers and sicker than ever before, support like yours is more crucial than ever to help specialists be prepared for whatever life-threatening conditions their young patients face. Because timing is everything, and kids simply can’t wait.

You can help save more children’s lives by giving today. When you give before June 30, your donation will be matched to go twice as far to ensure children like Nash have access to the best care possible when their lives – and their futures – depend on it.

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