James and two other intrepid men (A.K.A. Team #showmethemoney) will be cycling from Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge to the Étienne Stéphane Tarnier (inventor of the children's incubator) memorial in Paris, in a bid to raise funds for the Neonatal unit at the Rosie Hospital (Addenbrookes). The trip will begin at the entrance to the hospital. Travelling through Cambridgeshire, Essex & Kent before boarding the Ferry/Channel Tunnel to Calais. Once on French soil the ride will continue through the French countryside and on to the finish line in Paris.

One of the members of the travelling team, Matt, had a shock in January 2009 when his now wife Beckie, pregnant at the time, was rushed into hospital. After a few hours in hospital and after various tests, the decision was made to undertake an emergency caesarean section and bring forward the birth of their daughter by 8 weeks. At only 32 weeks old, baby Caitlin was placed into an incubator in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) at the Rosie. She was cared for 24 hours a day for the following 4 weeks in both NICU & SCBU (Special Care Baby Unit) to help her become strong enough to breath unaided and prepare her for life outside hospital.

Thanks to the dedicated and sensitive staff that work in these units, and the amazing equipment they are able to use, the once frail & vulnerable premature babies are able to be cared for in the most technologically advanced way possible to reduce the risk of future health problems.

At two and a half years old, Caitlin shows no health or development problems whatsoever, something for which we can only thank a combination of this fantastic equipment and equally brilliant staff.

Unfortunately, as with many advanced treatment units, the NHS alone cannot always meet the demand of equipment required to undertake this care – the reason for our fundraising attempt with this challenge. With what is now medically possible and having personally experienced what can be achieved, it would be hard to think that babies are not given the same sort of chance of life due to just the cost of a few key pieces of new equipment.

A second member of the team, James has also had cause to be grateful for the hard work they do at the Rosie, having his first daughter, Lucy, who was three weeks premature, looked after by the fantastic staff and equipment. To add to that, pre-birth complications that were detected in his second child, Max, who was thought to have brain development problems. After all the hard work, both children are doing fine, Lucy is now 5 and a half years old and Max jhas just turned 2.

 

Please visit the #showmethemoney Team Page

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