Alyce Aistrope

Hugo’s time in SCBU

When Hugo was born early at 36+1 he needed some special care. This special care was provided by SCBU (Special Care Baby Unit) at the Womens and Children’s Hospital where he was born. 

Hugo’s first experience with difficulty was that he was very cold and struggling to stay warm. This required him to be inside an enclosed crib which is set to 30 degrees. He was then given 24 hours of ‘blue light treatment’ for jaundice as he was very yellow which is very common in premmie babies. Hugo was having blood taken every day for numerous tests. One problem that kept arising was that his blood sugar levels were very low (hypoglycaemia) and he couldn’t retain sugars well. He had a heart monitor machine attached to his chest along with an outlet sock to keep an eye on his oxygen levels, HR and pulse. On day 6 he experienced two desaturations with cyanosis. This was very hard to hear. He wasn’t doing too well and the DR’s had suspected he may have sepsis so he was given antibiotics through a drip. He also had a feeding tube through his nose and was being fed my breast milk through this tube as some days he was very lethargic and didn’t have the energy to feed. It was really hard seeing Hugo hooked up to so many different things all at once and seeing him look this way. It was also hard not being able to hold him for too long as we couldn’t afford him to get cold again. It was hard to see him squirm and cry every time blood was taken from him. It was hard to hear the HR monitor machine beep and sound, not knowing if he was okay. All of these things were hard to see but we knew they were helping him get stronger. I will never forget what we felt in SCBU. But I will always be grateful for the gentle, intelligent workers who cared for Hugo 24 hours a day when we couldn’t be down there with him, they always were. This is why I have chosen to participate in the running/walking for premature babies challenge, to raise funds for the life saving equipment that helped Hugo and continues to help premmie babies each and every day.

This November I’m taking on the Premmie Marathon Challenge

I’ll be clocking up my kms in the Premmie Marathon Challenge by walking 100km in November with Hugo to raise funds for life-saving neonatal equipment that will give critically ill and premature babies a better chance of survival.

Have never participated in a fundraiser before but this one is close to my heart. Hugo only spent a week in the Special Care Unit but some of his neighbours had been there for months on end. We really saw it all in there and are incredibly grateful for the care our little man received. If you’re interested and able to, feel free to make a generous tax-deductible donation and join me in raising funds for premmie hospital care. 

Thank you for your support.
Your donation will help keep me motivated as I complete my challenge through November, knowing that each km I complete is helping save the lives of sick and premature babies.

Thank you! From Alyce and Hugo xx