At 20-weeks pregnant, Sian learned that her baby boy, Jude, would be born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect characterized by four specific cardiac defects. Sian says when she found out the news, she was scared, panicked and worried about her child’s future, but at the same time the team at the Alberta Children’s Hospital was a beacon of support that helped her make sense of everything that was happening.
From that moment on, Sian says, the cardiology team at the Alberta Children’s Hospital has been their constant. “Jude has been taken care of from the second we knew something was wrong,” Sian says. “From day one in the process, the team as a whole were really, really warm. They know Jude, they care about Jude.”
In the months that followed, doctors made sure Jude was healthy while he grew big enough to have his surgery. In August of 2023, Alberta Children’s Hospital doctors referred Jude for surgery at the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton and began preparing Sian for what to expect.
Sian remembers the day the doctors brought them to the library at the Alberta Children’s Hospital and explained exactly how the surgery and recovery would work, and together they went over photos and diagrams of the experience. She even kept the picture pediatric cardiologist Dr. Michael Friedman drew of Jude’s heart as a memory of how special the team is a memento of that time in their lives. “They were very full on, she says, “They were dedicated to our little baby and his success.”
Since his surgery, Sian says Jude has turned into a “hurricane” of a toddler, and he lives with no fear. He is happy and healthy and running laps around his big brother. Sian says she has had friends whose children have also had heart conditions and, thanks to the excellent care they’ve received at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, she tells them, “It’s going to be OK.” Jude comes to the hospital for regular checkups with his cardiology team and will continue to do so until he’s an adult. Sian says their family considers the Alberta Children’s Hospital their home.
