Every day, 12 babies are born with congenital heart disease (CHD) in the UK. Every day, new families receive the devastating news that their baby is facing open heart surgery and a battle to survive. This Giving Tuesday, children’s heart charity, Tiny Tickers, aims to make sure parents know they’re not alone.
Tiny Tickers is a national charity that works to improve the early detection and care of babies with serious heart conditions. Around 6,000 babies are born with a serious heart defect in the UK each year. As well as working to give these babies a better start, Tiny Tickers supports their families through, what can be, a truly devastating experience.
On Giving Tuesday, Tiny Tickers will ask supporters to donate £2.50 and send a hug to a family embarking on the challenging CHD journey. This will enable the charity to include a hug button in a support pack for a family. The support pack provides all the information and support a newly diagnosed heart family needs. Hug button donors can leave a special message of support, and the family receiving the hug will be able to see who their hug is from.
The hug button is a token parents can take to appointments and the hospital ward to remind them that the charity and the entire community of heart parents are there for them. Tiny Tickers aims to send 100 hugs to heart parents this Giving Tuesday.
Katie, mum of Primrose, who was born with a serious heart condition, requiring multiple open-heart surgeries, said: “When I received the support pack and hug button, it made me realise I wasn’t alone.”
Vicki, mum to heart patient Jack, says of the support pack and hug button: “It helped us understand what we were about to embark upon and made us feel less isolated.”
“When a family is confronted with a life-threatening diagnosis, the journey ahead can feel overwhelmingly daunting and isolating. Many families share with us the profound sense of loneliness they experienced, until they discovered the unwavering support and compassion of the heart family community. We are proud to offer heart families reliable information, peer support services and online forums to help them on their journeys. The hug button is another way to let them know they are never alone—we are here, holding their hand, every step of the way.”
“This wonderful campaign from Tiny Tickers will bring so many families comfort during one of the most difficult times of their lives. This is the true purpose of Giving Tuesday – bringing people together to make the world a better place through simple but impactful acts of kindness. I hope this special and meaningful campaign inspires everyone to consider how they can make a difference this Giving Tuesday, whether it’s making a donation, volunteering, or simply checking in on a friend.”
Tiny Tickers, a national charity, was founded in 1999 by world-renowned fetal cardiologist Dr Helena Gardiner, when she realised many of the babies she was caring for could have been helped earlier. It helps babies with congenital heart disease (CHD), their families and the health professionals who look after them. We want every baby with a serious heart condition to have the best chance of survival and quality of life.
Tiny Tickers aims to:
- Improve detection and diagnosis of CHD
- Educate and support health professionals
- Advance treatment and care of patients
- Improve experience of families affected by CHD
