Aiden’s Story

My son, Aiden Rouart, was born at 27+3 weeks in July 2014. He weighed 2.6lb at birth but quickly dropped to 1.9lb. He had 6 blood transfusions, suffered a collapsed lung and sepsis, had a bleed on the brain at birth and a PDA that required treatment in the unit. It was a roller coaster journey to home but we all made it through thanks to the amazing care he received! He spent 3 months – 88 days – on the neonatal unit and came home on oxygen, which he needed until he was 13 months. Since then, he’s gone from strength to strength. 

Between the wonderful nurses (too many for me to name, but all firmly held in my heart) and Pauline Woods from Born Too Soon, I genuinely felt like I was part of a family. I cried uncontrollably when we were finally discharged: one because I was so emotional and happy to get my little boy home; but also because I was going to miss being a apart of the wonderful NNU family. 

I was leaving my baby’s saviours, and my agony aunts, and I wondered how I’d ever cope without them!

The team in the Kingston NNU are the most gentle, caring yet strong people I have ever met. They not only do such an amazing job of treating and saving the babies in their care, but they make time to support and nurture the parents too. 

Even when things were very tough or things went wrong, as they inevitably do on a long journey with an extremely premature baby, I couldn’t fault the care we received. 

I’d never want my son to go back to those long, hard and traumatic days, but often I still miss being there in that bubble of care.  

I owe the Kingston NNU my baby’s life and I will forever be indebted to everyone who works there.

He is now a funny, healthy, intelligent little 5 year old boy and you would never believe he’d been through so much in those early days. He’s my hero, but so are the doctors, nurses and Pauline from the Kingston NNU.