By YASEMIN TALAT
WYNDHAM residents are being urged to be sweethearts this Valentine’s Day by giving a gift that will make a difference to someone else’s life.
With Valentine’s Day only days away HeartKids Australia is calling on everyone to help fight childhood heart disease (CHD) by participating in the inaugural Sweetheart Day on 14 February, also known as International Childhood Heart Disease Awareness Day.
Sweetheart Day aims to raise awareness of CHD and encourage donations to continue the national charity’s support, research, advocacy and awareness work.
The Dickson family from Werribee know all too well the anguish of childhood heart disease.
Their daughter Scarlett was born with three main congenital heart defects on 28 August 2012.
Baby Scarlett was immediately transferred to The Children’s Hospital at only two hours old where she underwent her first open heart surgery at six days old.
“It was complicated, just a rollercoaster,” said her mother Sasha.
At six weeks old Scarlett again battled through another open heart surgery this time to repair her mitral valve.
And when her mitral valve became severely narrowed Scarlett endured her third open heart surgery.
“Instead of bringing her home she ended up on a machine for a week and a half,” Mrs Dickson said.
When doctors tried to remove the machine Scarlett went into cardiac arrest and was back on the machine for another five days.
Days before Christmas Mr and Mrs Dickson were told their new born girl had only a 10 per cent chance of making it to a year and only 10 per cent chance of coming off the machine successfully.
But at five and a half months she was released from hospital.
“We’ve seen a lot of her little friends pass on in hospital from congenital heart defects,” Mrs Dickson said.
Mrs Dickson said the year ahead will be another rollercoaster with Scarlett needing another valve replacement at some stage.
Six babies a day are born with a heart defect in Australia, and CHD is a lifelong disease with no known cure.
Donate or buy a virtual Valentine’s gift at www.sweetheartday.org.au all proceeds go directly to HeartKids Australia.
