Mum's desperation as baby Mazie-Mae born with serious heart condition - and her hopes to help others in the same situation

The Peterborough mum of a baby born with serious heart problems has spoken of the moments of desperation as the tiny baby girl was rushed away for life saving surgery – and her hopes of helping other families as Mazie-Mae celebrates her first birthday.

Parents Kirsty Bewick and Matthew Woolmer were preparing to take Mazie home after being born when doctors noticed something wrong with her heart.

She was rushed to intensive care, before being transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where she had open heart surgery at just a week old to keep her alive.

But the young heart warrior kept fighting – and after more than a month in intestive care, she was allowed home – and last week she celebrated her first birthday.

Now mum Kirsty, from Paston, is doing her best to help others in the same situation.

"We were worried and scared, with lots of thoughts going through our minds."

She said: “We didn't know about Mazie-Mae’s heart condition till she was born. She was born weighing a healthy 6lb 2oz.

“We were waiting to be discharged home and then the next thing a doctor was rushing Mazie-Mae away to a side room. All the doctors went running in and there were machines and wires all being brought out and put on her.

"Then she was taken to the Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Matthew and myself went back to the bed bay, and, after a little while a nurse come to us and just told us she was very poorly and moved us into a side room.

"We were worried and scared, with lots of thoughts going through our minds.

"We both sat in silence staring out the window not knowing anything until around six hours later a doctor come and told us that Mazie-Mae has a very poorly heart and she's being transferred to Great Ormand Street. We got to see her for about 10 minutes then had to leave again while they made her stable to travel.

"We were told we had to make our own way there as due to COVID we couldn't travel in the special care ambulance with her.

"We went back to the ward had them discharge me rushed him to see our other children grabbed some clothes and my cousin drove us to London.”

Open heart surgery needed just seven days after she was born

Mazie-Mae needed just under two months in hospital before she was allowed home from Great Ormond Street.

Kirsty said: "When we arrived at around 11pm Mazie-Mae was already having tests done we finally got take through to see her at around 2am. That morning we were told all of her heart conditions.

"We were shocked and scared, wondering what they could do for her if they could even do anything. But we knew she was in the best hands at one of the best hospitals.”

Mazie-Mae was diagnosed with a series of conditions, including mitral valve regurgitation – where the valve between the left heart chambers doesn't close properly allowing blood to leave backwards; ansposition of the great arteries – where the two arteries that carry the blood from the heart to the lungs and body aren't connected as they should be they are reversed; a ventricular septal defect – where there is a hole in the septum wall that separates the two lower chambers and her pulmonary valve has not formed properly.

She developed a blood clot in her leg and when she was just seven days old needed open heart surgery.

Kirsty said: “Mazie-Mae’s first surgery wasn't successful and needed to go down again. At this point she was 4lb 8oz.

"Everyday was hard as we didn't no what to expect. Many times we nearly lost her

"During this time we had to learn how to do injections for the blood clot, and learn to feed Mazie through her tube. I have a sats (oxygen saturation) machine also from the hospital to check her sats everyday. Mazie-Mae recovered very well and quickly and we were discharged on July 4.

Long term prognosis still unknown

She still needs to go to Great Ormond Street every two or three weeks for checks, and Kirsty said the long term prognosis was not yet known.

The family – which also includes Mazie’s sister, Kyra (12) and brothers Oscar (5) and Lenny (4) have now welcomed the new arrival home.

Kirsty said: “Her older sister understands but her two brothers just know she has a poorly heart. It has been a very difficult year for them with being away for so long.”

"We want to not only help the hospital but to also help other families that have to go through this.”

Mazie-Mae’s family are now keen to help others in their position.

They are trying to raise £500 to buy a ‘training doll’ for the hospital. The doll is used to teach parents life saving skills at home.

Kirsty said: “Myself and her dad had to go through lots of training before Mazie was allowed to come home. We had to do training for injections and feeding tubes but the main one was for life support.

"While doing the training we had to wait as the hospital only has one doll to do this training with, so we have decided to do some fund raising so they can buy another one or hopefully two. We want to not only help the hospital but to also help other families that have to go through this.”

An online fundraising page has been set up to raise the money. For more information, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/maziemae-fundraiser