Aisling Burns and Lauren Reilly are adamant that without South West Acute Hospital’s (SWAH) neo-natal ward, their children would simply not be here today.
Their candid and forthright statement is a clear message to the Western Health and Social Care Board that Fermanagh is not prepared to let the ward for premature and sick babies go without a fight.
The ward is currently under threat as part of a £12.5 million Savings Plan drafted by the Trust Board. It proposes that the unit should be replaced by a ‘transitional care’ based service, to be provided from the Paediatric Ward instead.
Aisling’s six-month-old baby boy, Myles, arrived unexpectedly into the world earlier this year on the day she was attending a wedding.
“My waters ruptured at 34 weeks without any warning,” she explains, “Myles decided he was going to make his grand entrance into the world. He was already in the breach position so I knew I was going to have a section anyway, but by the time I got to the hospital it was an emergency section -- he was on his way.”
Staff had no time to administer the steroid injections that help a premature baby’s lungs when they are born. Instead Myles was quickly whisked away to the neo-natal ward to be given oxygen support.
“We didn’t get to hold him. He remained in an incubator on oxygen for two days. It was touch and go for those first 48 hours,” says Aisling.
And when Myles was showing no signs of improvement, his consultant told Aisling and her husband, Simon that he would have to be transferred to Craigavon.
“He required more one to one neo natal care and the medication that he needed was no longer available at SWAH,” says Aisling, “The staff there are trained to give it, and it used to be available at SWAH, but because of previous cut backs, it isn’t available there anymore.”
A transfer team were making their way from Belfast to bring Myles to Craigavon when his condition at SWAH deteriorated.
“Thankfully the team arrived at SWAH just when they were needed most,” says Aisling, “They worked with him for a couple of hours.”
Myles had to travel to Craigavon with oxygen assistance.
“As far as I am concerned only for the staff at SWAH, Myles would not be here today. He is lucky to be alive.
“As a family we just can’t comprehend how they can remove such a vital service to the most vulnerable section of our society. 
“Now Myles is thriving. You wouldn’t even know to look at him what he has been through. But I will never forget those early days in the hospital and I will never forget how well cared for he was in SWAH. I can’t imagine what would have happened in our situation had the neo natal ward not been there. We owe that team in there everything that we could ever give.”
Aisling believes the proposed cuts have created a “fear and uncertainty” for other pregnant women in this area.
Lisnaskea mum, Lauren Reilly’s daughter, Zara, was born at 34 weeks gestation two years ago.
She has been told that if she were to have any more children, she would have to be induced early.
“If that is the case the baby would have to be in a neo natal ward again and if SWAH’s wasn’t there, it would be hard for me to travel up the country all the time to be at my baby’s side,” she says.
“If it wasn’t for the neo natal ward in SWAH Zara wouldn’t have celebrated her second birthday last week.”
Like Aisling, Lauren’s waters broke at 34 weeks gestation.
“She was transferred to the neo natal ward straight away so it was a couple of hours before I was able to see her after she was born because I was also so poorly,” explains Lauren.
“But we were so grateful for the ward in SWAH because I definitely wouldn’t have been fit to travel up to Derry/Londonderry or Belfast to go see her.”
When Zara was born Lauren already had a one-year-old son at home.
“With SWAH only 12 miles down the road, the staff were able to ring me every morning to update me and if anything was wrong I was down straight away -- I didn’t have to travel an hour-and-a-half to get to her.
“I think the people making these decisions have never experienced the need for the service first hand. If they did they would understand and would keep a perfectly good service running in SWAH. 
“Why have a brilliant new hospital if they take all the important wards away?”