A MUM is raising cash for the specialist ambulance service that helped save her son's life when he was born two months prematurely and "black and blue".
Laura Reed, 32, of West Avenue, Melbourne, gave birth to her son Luke at Broomfield Hospital two years ago.
"When he was born he was not breathing for 15 minutes," said mother-of-two Laura, recalling the terrifying night.
"Then they took him to the neonatal intensive care unit to try to stabilise him and get him breathing. He was black and blue – it looked like he had been in a fight. I was not allowed to see him for about two hours."
Staff at Broomfield Hospital soon discovered that her newborn son had a myriad of problems.
He was suffering from the potentially fatal blood poisoning sepsis, ruptured membranes, hypertension and bruising of the body sparked by a potassium overload and kidney failure.
"I was scared," added Laura simply. "They did not know how to treat Luke because they had never seen it before, so they were in constant calls with Addenbrooke's Hospital and Great Ormond Street."
In the end, just a day after Luke's birth, he was transported on blue lights from Broomfield Hospital to Luton's NICU by the specialist Acute Neonatal Transfer Service (ANTS).
"They were amazing," said Laura. "The nurse and doctor were fantastic from the moment I met them. They went through every single thing with me, even telling me it takes hours to make sure he's stable and safe. They gave me a leaflet that contained everything I needed to know.
"They helped to save his life. If they were not around, at the end of the day, Luke would not have got the treatment that he needed. He needed two full-body blood transfusions. He's our world."
But now at the age of two, Luke's problems are still not over. He suffers from cerebral palsy and also has swallowing problems.
And just last week, Laura took Luke to Great Ormond Street Hospital to have tests run to see if he could become blind in the future. He even has to permanently wear a helmet to avoid him bumping his head as he his prone to seizures.
But despite this, Luke is still remarkably positive about life.
"Luke looks like a normal two-year-old – he has just started walking. He is always very happy and very friendly to everybody," said Laura.
Speaking about his ten-year-old sister, Leah, she added: "She loves him – they have a great bond."
Earlier this month, Laura raised £800 in a sponsored head shave for ANTS at the Rising Sun pub on New London Road – but is still looking to raise more via a quiz night at the pub next month to help get a travelling incubator for their ambulance.
"You never know if a person is going to be in that situation and needs the ambulance team to take their daughter or son to get them help and hopefully save their life," she said.
To donate to Laura for ANTS, visit here.
