The family of a miracle Scots baby who was born weighing a little over 3lbs have inspired a £40,000 donation for the neonatal unit they used.
Callum Talbot from Aberdeen celebrated his 7th birthday on January 25 and his dad Will Talbot, a cranes and lifting technical authority at Apache, nominated the Archie Foundation to receive the huge sum as a thank you for the support he and his wife Michelle received after the early arrival of their son.
As a baby Callum spent seven weeks in the neonatal unit at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital before being allowed to go home with his mum and dad, who were able to use the parents’ facilities and free accommodation provided by the charity.
Years later to thank them for the tireless work the charity do to support the neonatal unit Will’s work had the opportunity to nominate a charity for a £40,000 bond committee donation and chose the Archie Foundation.
The funding will pay for a full Storz endoscope kit, which will allow medical staff to monitor and manage babies’ airways and provide the best possible outcome for little ones with breathing difficulties. The new equipment will be used in the new Baird Family Hospital, currently being built on the Foresterhill site.
Will told Aberdeen Live: “Callum was a miracle baby for us after six years of IVF and a late miscarriage. He was born at 29 weeks and weighed only 3lb but we were just so happy he was finally here.”
“He was in an incubator in high dependency before being moved to special care once he got stronger. He received amazing care from the staff at the neonatal unit and we really appreciated the support we received, including a night in the parents’ accommodation.
“When I saw the opportunity to nominate a charity to benefit from the bond committee donation I wanted to nominate Archie and we are so grateful it was chosen by my offshore colleagues.”
The Archie Foundation has committed to raising £2million to support the building, facilities and care at the new hospital, which will replace the existing Aberdeen Maternity Hospital and provide world-class fertility, maternity and neonatal care for local families. Archie has partnered with NHS Grampian to raise money to help create the very latest facilities and services beyond what the NHS could achieve.
Kelly M. Anderson, head of fundraising at The Archie Foundation, said the funding from Apache would make an incredible difference to babies and their families.
She said: “This is a wonderful birthday gift for both the charity and Callum, which is going to make such an impact for babies and families within the neonatal unit. We are extremely grateful to the team at Apache Corporation for choosing Archie to benefit from the proceeds raised by the offshore workforce on Apache’s North Sea platforms.”
Archie works closely with NHS Grampian to ensure that the Baird Family Hospital will provide world class care and treatment at every point of contact for the babies and families of Aberdeen and north Scotland.
“We are particularly committed to supporting areas which are not currently available through NHS funding alone, such as very specialised equipment. We want to make sure that babies like Callum who are receiving care and treatment in Aberdeen will benefit from the most excellent and advanced facilities as possible.
“The Storz endoscope is an essential piece of kit for breathing and airway management for wee ones who may not be ready to breathe on their own, and it will help us to deliver the difference for these babies and their families.”
You can visit Archie’s website for more information about the support available from the charity.
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