Ruaridh flies from Glasgow to London for neonatal care closer to home
- rebeccawilson945
- 21 hours ago
- 2 min read
Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Glasgow > University Hospital Lewisham
427 miles
When baby Ruaridh was born unexpectedly at just 31 weeks while his family was visiting Glasgow, his parents faced an overwhelming situation far from home. With his condition stable after two weeks in the NICU, Lia’s Wings stepped in to safely transfer him to a hospital closer to home.
This is Ruaridh’s story, told by his mum, Holly.
Our son, Ruaridh, arrived very suddenly and unexpectedly at 31 weeks while we were visiting friends in Glasgow. We had travelled from London for the weekend; my wife and I, along with our 3-year-old daughter.
After being born, our son was immediately admitted to the NICU and stayed there for two weeks. As he was doing well, there was a discussion about transferring him back to London so we could all go home. I had never heard of Lia's Wings, but I was told that they moved babies and children between hospitals and that they would be able to fly him down to London.
It was all organised swiftly by the consultants in the NICU and I was told to arrive the following morning at the hospital, and we would be flown down together. I was admittedly quite nervous; I don't really enjoy flying, and the thought of my tiny baby being flown in an incubator was quite overwhelming.
The Lia's Wings team arrived the next day and introduced themselves and they quickly put me at ease. They were calm, professional and efficient. They explained that they were fully trained neonatal consultants who were highly experienced in caring for and moving babies like Ruaridh. They answered all my questions, even the ones which I thought were a little silly.
The transfer was so smooth; the plane ride was quick and they provided lots of drinks and snacks (a very welcome surprise!). It all felt a bit surreal really, sitting in a small plane with Ruaridh next to me, but the consultants were fantastic, regularly checking on him and even giving him a mid-air milk drink via his Nasogastric tube! I felt so reassured that he was in safe hands and that we were finally going home.
We were transferred to a London hospital close to our house. The Lia's Wings team did a handover to the London team, and that was it, the transfer was complete. We spent the next two weeks visiting him there before he came home for good.
I am so grateful for everything that Lia's wings did for my family, and I can't thank them enough. It is something which I'm sure Ruaridh will love to hear about when he is older; it was quite the experience for such a tiny baby!
