In Memory Of Baby Spencer - A Camera For NICU

In memory of Baby Spencer Peter Emmet, our tiny superhero whose short life touched so many hearts.

Our precious baby boy was born on the 20th May 2020 and sadly gained his wings on the 27th May 2020, he was just 7 days old. 

To honour his memory and to thank the consultants, doctors, midwives and staff of Holles Street Hospital for their exceptional care we are hoping to raise funds to purchase an Angel Iris Web Camera for use in the Neonatal Unit.

Any additional funds we manage to raise, will be donated to the NMH Foundation for Neonatal Research and to purchase Feileacáin Memory Boxes to donate to the hospital.

We greatly appreciate any donations, no matter how small, thank you everyone for all your kind donations, love and support

Our Story
On the 14th May we were admitted to hospital to have daily Doppler scans after a routine appointment confirmed high blood pressure and an ultrasound of the baby had shown occasional absence of blood flow from the umbilical cord.

We were only 24 weeks pregnant at this stage and scared out of our minds, he was always moving and always had a very strong heartbeat, there were never any signs that something wasn’t right , bar the blood pressure I never felt sick.

The prognosis wasn’t great if the baby had to be delivered so early, the hope was to get him to 26-28 weeks for him to have a better chance of survival as long as the daily scans didn’t show any signs of reverse blood flow and the baby wasn’t in any distress. 

Brian was at home looking after Louie, unable to visit due to the restrictions, he had to wait for calls to give him the daily updates from the scans which couldn’t have been easy. 

Thankfully, he was allowed in for one of the appointments so he got to discuss everything with the doctor and get any answers he needed, it somewhat put his mind at ease.  I was given steroids to help strengthen the baby’s lungs in case he had to be delivered, we would class each day as a win if there was no change in the scan results and everything was okay with the baby.

We managed to get to 25 weeks & 4 days before a scan showed reverse blood flow and severe placental insufficiency, I had to call Brian to come in straight away to discuss our options with the neonatal team.

Spencer was delivered on the 20th May extremely premature and weighing just 575 grams, he let out a huge cry to let everyone know he was here, we got to see him for a few minutes before he was whisked away to the neonatal ward. 

Visiting times were restricted, moms were only allowed visit for 2 hours per day and dads for 1 hour a week, which had to be pre-booked, it was so tough.
For his first few days, we were receiving promising reports of him being taken off the ventilator for a couple of hours at a time, even though he would always end up being put back on it at that point there was no cause for concern.

He was quite a feisty little boy, pulling at wires and pushing the doctors hands away when he didn't want to be disturbed, his little character was really beginning to shine. He always looked so comfortable and cosy and would sleep with his little hands up over his head, he was always sleeping so it was rare to see him with his eyes open!

We got to read him stories, tell him all about his big bro, family and friends & everyone at home praying for him and lighting candles, we’d send pictures and updates to everyone on how he was doing.

Spencer sadly passed away on the 27th May with his mom and dad by his side, he put up such a fight to stay with us and we are so proud of him and so happy he chose us to be his mom and dad, we will cherish all the memories he gave us.

We received so much support from Angela the Chaplain and Debbie the bereavement midwife for the week after Spencer passed away and were allowed to visit him in the Chapel of Rest, which brought us great comfort.
There are so many beautiful keepsakes in the memory box we received from Feileacáin, we are so grateful for to have these treasured memories.

Annemarie, Brian and Louie xxx

About the Angel Eye Camera
The hospital currently has 5 standard Angel Eye cameras that are view only and enable parents to virtually visit their babies in the Neonatal unit. 
The cameras provide so much comfort and reassurance for parents who are unable to attend in person due to illness or location or for mom's who are in recovery after delivery of baby or for mom's who have been transferred to another hospital, and especially during COVID19 where visiting hours were severely impacted and restricted.

We were very fortunate to get to use the very first camera back in 2016 when Spencer's big brother Louie arrived prematurely, his mom was in recovery and couldn't get down to the NICU ward to visit him. 

The newer Iris Camera will be launched in July and have audio capabilities enabled soon after, a microphone will be placed in the incubator so babies will be able to hear moms and dads voices - This will be the first Angel Iris purchased and a very fitting tribute in memory of baby Spencer - The camera cost is approx. $3500
Link for more info on Angel Eye Cameras : https://angeleye.health/

Feileacáin 
Féileacáin (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Association of Ireland – SANDAI) was formed in 2009 and subsequently registered as a charity in 2010 ( CHY – 19635).  Feileacain was formed by a group of bereaved parents to offer support to anyone affected by the death of a baby around the time of birth, and the organisation is now the national charity supporting families affected by perinatal loss.
Feileacain is a volunteer led organisation and receives no funding from central government, relying instead on the support of our community and the families who avail of our services.
Link for more info on Feileacáin : https://feileacain.ie/

NMH Foundation
What we do
Driven by our desire to help babies to arrive, survive and thrive, The NMH Foundation's focus is on advancing maternal and neonatal health, through funding research, innovation and excellence in care. With our community partners and community supporters, we raise vital funds to invest in research, vital equipment, technology and support systems within the hospital. 
Link for more info on NMH Foundation: https://www.nmhfoundation.ie/