Articles by Sarah Easedale

Technology

Mum raises £1m towards son's US heart operation

Jasmin said it was a "coincidence" that Ollie was diagnosed at two weeks old as he went for a check-over after having prolonged jaundice. A screening that measured his blood oxygen saturation levels saw him rushed to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit as they were at only 85%. Jasmin said: "I'd had one of the roughest births you can imagine, I was still physically recovering and I'd thought 'oh well, at least I have my baby'. "The next day they found he had a rare heart condition," she said. "It was the worst time of my life." Initially she said she was told Ollie would be okay without surgeries but then at 10 months old, the family were told they would be "lucky" if he lived until he was two. The NHS said they could not operate on Ollie because of the complexities of his condition, and could only offer him end-of-life care. "I remember dropping to the floor in fits of tears," Jasmin said. "I fell into really bad depression and I already had postnatal depression." Jasmin was on the support page for parents of children with heart conditions when she discovered that Dr Frank Hanley - the man who invented the particular surgery Ollie needed - worked at Stanford and she applied for the operation. "We found out on Ollie's birthday that they said yes and I instantly started up the fundraiser," she said.