Violet was born on the 21st May 2006. During her birth Violet was starved of oxygen for a period time; this is otherwise known as perinatal asphyxia. This meant that Violet suffered a brain injury as a result of the perinatal asphyxia and developed a condition known as cerebral palsy.

 

When Violet was born her family were asked to take part in the TOBY study. This study looked into the benefits of whole body hypothermia for the treatment of perinatal asphyxia. The treatment is to reduce the core body temperature of babies who have suffered perinatal asphyxia down to 33.5c (92.3f) for three days, then slowly raise the temperature back to normal. This treatment has to commence within six hours of birth and the child must be at least 36 weeks gestation. The study looked at the development of babies who had the whole body hypothermia against those who did not have that treatment. The TOBY study proved this to be an effective way in which to reduce the likelihood of a brain injury or death after perinatal asphyxia and it is now used within hospitals that have the facilities to do so. Unfortunately Violet was unable to receive that treatment as she was over 6 hours of age when she arrived at a hospital with cooling equipment.

 

Violet’s Light is a fundraising group based in Thornton Cleveleys. Our aim is to raise enough money for cooling equipment for hospitals in the North West, as not every area will have these facilities due to limited funding. This will allow more babies the chance to have the cooling treatment that will help save lives.

 

Our first goal is to raise £16,000 for Saint Mary’s Hospital in Manchester, where Violet was treated many times. Saint Mary’s is the base for the Greater Manchester Neonatal Transport Service, GMNeTS, who transport poorly babies from across the North West for specialist care, such as the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Saint Mary’s Hospital. The funds raised will purchase a cooling machine – the ‘Tecotherm Neo’ which can be taken by ambulance with the GMNeTS team enabling cooling treatment to be started before babies arrive at a cooling centre. This means that cooling treatment will be available to more babies in those valuable first six hours. The fundraising will also pay for training for medical staff from across the North West about how and when to refer babies for cooling treatment.

On Sunday, 16th December 2012, peacefully whilst in hospital, Violet fell asleep aged 6 years old.