Donation to NICU after ‘unforgettable experience’

A heartfelt donation has been made to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Scunthorpe hospital to help families with their early arrivals.

After Melissa and David White welcomed their baby into the world five weeks early last November, they decided to fundraise for the unit where their son was cared for in his time of need.

Melissa said: “When you’re on NICU, somewhere you never really expect to end up, the staff are like you’re second family. I don’t regret Ollie coming early because then I never would have gone through what was an unforgettable experience with the nurses who are always there for you.”

Melissa and David realised while Ollie was on NICU that the unit only had one breast milk warmer and that on occasion parents were waiting to use it. David ran the North Lincolnshire half marathon and raised £600 to buy a second device.

David said: “I found the run tiring as I’m not a born runner so I was looking forward to the finish line at Glanford Park. Melissa and Ollie were both waiting at the end which encouraged me to keep going.”

He added: “My employer was amazing when Ollie was born. We were worried all my paternity leave would be spent in hospital with him but they gave me extra time off over Christmas which is our busiest time of year. They also helped us with raising the money and matched the amount we raised.”

Sarah Judd, ward sister on NICU, said: “When warming up a mother’s milk, it’s really important it’s warmed to the right temperature so the nutrients are not damaged. The breast milk warmer heats it to the right temperature so it will be really useful to have two during busy periods.”