Jamie's Journal

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Age 5 (As told by his mother and father)

The Congenital Heart Center at Kosair Children's Hospital gave Jamie a new chance at a full life.

When Jamie was first born we had no idea he had a congenital heart defect. It wasn't until his nine month well visit at the pediatrician's office that they detected something might be wrong. During that visit, the doctor was unable to pick up a pulse in his legs. He referred Jamie to a special pediatric cardiologist who diagnosed Jamie's heart defect.

Jamie's heart defect would eventually require three surgeries to correct. After his first two surgeries, it became apparent that the next procedure would be very complex. We then began to research our options as we wanted to be sure Jamie had the very best care available. If that meant we needed to go to New York, Boston or Chicago we were committed to doing it. But everywhere we turned we kept hearing the same thing over and over again - you have the best in your own backyard at Kosair Children's Hospital.

Over the past four years, Jamie has had four surgeries, one of which required the implantation of a pacemaker. Today, he's doing great. He's active, happy and healthy. He enjoys swimming, playing with his little sister, and he is looking forward to starting school soon. While we're always going to have to monitor Jamie's heart health and undergo procedures to replace his pacemaker, he's going to have a chance to grow up and live a full life. Something we weren't always sure was going to happen.

We've been so lucky to have Dr. Austin, Dr. Boone and the staff at Kosair Children's care for Jamie. Their skill and compassion helped us stay strong to help Jamie stay strong.

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