A NORTHSIDE woman has praised staff at Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, for saving her son’s life.
Children’s Medical & Research Foundation (CMRF) Crumlin supported Jessica Bergin, from Ballyboughal, and her son Roman during their stay at the hospital. Now Jessica is calling for more public investment into paediatric research.
CMRF Crumlin raises vital funds for Crumlin hospital and the National Children’s Research Centre (NCRC).
“It was my first pregnancy, everything was running smoothly until I had my 20 week scan,” says Jessica.
“They didn’t say anything for a while and asked me to come back a week later – where I found out that the baby’s bladder wasn’t emptying properly and as a result fluid was traveling back into his kidneys and damaging them.
“His kidneys were monitored throughout the whole pregnancy and I knew that when he was born he was going to be brought to Crumlin Hospital.”
Jessica explained that when Roman was born his kidneys were in bad shape. She knew during the pregnancy that he would be in danger once he was born.
“Things looked more stable than originally thought when he was born but I was constantly afraid,” she says.
“The nurses and doctors in Crumlin Hospital were amazing. They adored and cared for him from the second he arrived through their doors.
“They didn’t just look after him, they took care of me too in ways that I will forever be grateful to them for.
“When Roman was about a week-old a nurse came to see me at around midnight and she asked me why I wouldn’t hold him as often as I could and for the first time since finding out about his problems.
“I admitted that I was too afraid to let myself love him in case he died. I was terrified to get attached.
“She (the nurse) spent the next hour explaining every part of Roman’s condition, the present and long term implications, then she finished by telling me that he was not going to die.
“Those words were the biggest relief any mother can hear! From that moment on things could only look brighter.
“We’re so lucky that Roman only had one kidney infection in the last year and that his hospital stays have been very limited considering his condition. Looking at him you wouldn’t think there was anything wrong with him. He had surgery to create a stoma on his bladder which takes the pressure off his kidneys and bladder, giving them a chance to heal. He had a scan recently and we know his kidneys are growing, which is a great sign. Originally we believed the best case scenario was 30 percent kidney capacity for life and a kidney transplant down the line but a consultation at six months showed that he has already reached 60 percent kidney function.”
Jessica says research into children’s health is so important.
“Children should never be born sick but unfortunately they are,” she says.
“Research means that hopefully one day this will not be the case. It’s so important for our children so they can live and grow without worry or illness.
“Roman is the strongest, cheekiest, happiest little boy in the whole world regardless of his condition.”
Jessica says she wants him to have the same opportunities as every other kid his age.
“He’s two now and he is the best thing that has ever happened to me and so, so many other people,” she adds.
To donate to CMRF, please go to https://cmrf.org/donate
