A family has donated an Abi Cooling Cot to the Chestnut Tree House Hospice in Arundel in memory of baby George.
Families who suffer the tragedy of stillbirth will be able to spend precious time with their baby at the Chestnut Tree Children’s Hospice in Arundel thanks to the donation of an ‘Abi Cooling cot’
The special cot was purchased with funds raised by Ginny Ryan whose daughter’s son George Percy Patrick Elie was born sleeping.
Ginny Ryan said, “We found out that George had no heartbeat when my daughter Sophie was in labour. They were the most heartbreaking words I’ve ever heard. He was born at full term and looked so beautiful and peaceful. We were so grateful for the Abi Cooling Cot, it meant that we were all able to spend a few days with him instead of a few hours. We had never heard of a cooling cot before. I really felt as though I needed to do something to buy an Abi Cooling cot for a hospital or Hospice that hasn’t got one. So, when I was lucky enough to get a London Marathon place, I knew what I was going to raise money for. Seeing George’s plaque on the Abi Cooling Cot at Chestnut Tree House Children’s Hospice was amazing. Something good came out of something very sad.”
Abi Cooling Cot’s keep babies at a cooler temperature meaning that the child can stay with their parents for longer, giving families the chance to grieve and say goodbye in their own time.
Ginny continued, “Abigails Footsteps means so much to my family. My daughter was given one of their cooling cots when her son was stillborn which meant her and her partner were able to spend as much time with my grandson George as they wanted. We were able to dress him and give him lots of cuddles.”
Leanne Asling, Clinical Nurse Specialist- Palliative Care, Chestnut Tree House said, “We got to meet baby George’s amazing parents and family when they came to see us at Chestnut tree house. George’s family has been working extremely hard to fundraise so that they could purchase an Abi cooling cot for us to have here at the hospice. We are so extremely grateful for this really important piece of equipment; the cooling cot allows parents to spend precious time with their baby whilst in a homely environment at the hospice. The cot is just perfect for us and can be easily moved to facilitate parents’ wishes at such a difficult time. We did not have a cooling cot for babies at Chestnut tree so this will make a huge difference for our families. Thank you so much from all of the team at Chestnut tree house.”
David Ward, Chief Executive, of Abigail’s Footsteps said, “When we had our daughter Abigail we only had two or three hours with her. Having to say goodbye so soon was heartbreaking and we knew we had to do something to support other grieving parents. The Abi Cooling Cot we developed with The Bond Group allows people to have two or three days with their baby if they wish. Abigail’s Footsteps is committed to providing an Abi Cooling Cot to every hospitals in the UK.”
To find out more about Abigail’s Footsteps visit www.abigailsfootsteps.co.uk and to discuss how you could help fundraise for an Abi Cooling Cot please contact faye.hill@abigailsfootsteps.co.uk
About the Abi Cooling Cot
Donations allow Abigail’s Footsteps to distribute Abi Cooling cots to hospitals across the country. The Abi Cooling Cot keeps the baby at a cooler temperature meaning that the child can stay with their parents for longer, giving families the chance to grieve and say goodbye in their own time.
The Abi Cot is produced by The Bond Group who are based in Sheerness, Kent and every donated cold cot includes an engraved plaque, in memory of a family’s loss.
www.abigailsfootsteps.co.uk/professionals/cold-cots-for-hospitals
About Abigail’s Footsteps
Abigail’s Footsteps is a Kent based baby loss charity providing support and counselling for bereaved parents and families as well as specialist bereavement training for midwives and healthcare professionals.
The charity was founded by parents Jo and David Ward following the death of their daughter Abigail Ward who was stillborn at 41 weeks.
Since 2010, they charity has worked to improve the way bereaved parents are cared for by hospitals and to better educate midwives about how to care for grieving parents. Sadly, stillbirths occur daily, yet many hospitals are not equipped to deal with the parental care required.
By working with medical professionals to understand the issues and seek solutions Abigail’s Footsteps has helped many families across the UK.
