Life-saving surgery gives young Helensburgh 'heart hero' a new start

Findlay Campbell, who has complete congenital heart block, had the life-saving surgery almost a year to the day since he was honoured by the BHF for his tireless efforts to raise awareness of the charity and its work.

Findlay’s mum, Debra-Lee Readhead, got in touch after her son’s new device was fitted earlier this month. “Findlay got his new life saving pacemaker on Friday, June 15 in the Royal Hospital for Children.

“The operation was initially scheduled for August, but a recent check up showed a considerable decrease in the battery of his old pacemaker and his surgery was brought forward.

“It all happened very fast but the operation was completely perfect and he tolerated it well.”

Findlay’s new pacemaker, which can last for up to 12 years, is bigger than his old one – but it also makes use of the latest technology to enable nursing staff to keep an eye on his state of health.

Debra said: “His pacing checks are now virtually monitored continuously, using a hub via wifi.

“The hospital logs on daily to check readings and they contact us if it shows concern.

“It gives us huge peace of mind. The advances in medical technology, and the way they’ve given my boy a new lease of life like this, is beyond amazing.”

Findlay was originally due to have a new pacemaker fitted in August, until a check-up in May revealed that the battery on his old one, which had kept him alive for eight and a half years, was fast running out of power.

“It all happened incredibly quickly,” Debra said. He was due to go in for surgery in August, and he had a check-up in February, and everything was on course for August at that point.

“Everything was on course for August until the hospital staff called me up a few days later and said ‘we need him in now’.

“Apparently the battery in his old pacemaker had only three to seven days of life left in it.

“It’s only now that the operation is over that I realised how much he’d been struggling for the last few months.

“He had dramatically slowed down in the last eight weeks in particular, because his battery was depleting, and the last three weeks before the operation really were horrific.

“But since we got him home he’s told me that he feels much, much better. He says he feels as if he could run for miles.

“The surgeon warned me that he was likely to feel a bit groggy for six to eight hours after the operation – but he was the most hyper I’ve seen him for about three years.”

Findlay was born with complete congenital heart block as a result of the antibodies in his mum’s blood attacking his heart in the womb, which caused him to suffer heart failure before he was even born.

The condition prevents any electricity getting to the bottom two chambers of Findlay’s heart, meaning that it can’t beat without a pacemaker.

He was born eight weeks early after the condition was diagnosed, and had a pacemaker fitted shortly after he was born – though he underwent emergency surgery at the age of two after damaging the equipment in a fall.

Findlay, 10, a pupil at St Joseph’s Primary School in Helensburgh, shared the ‘Young Hero’ award with two other recipients at the BHF’s 2017 Scottish Heart Heroes awards.

The judging panel couldn’t separate the three nominees and decided to jointly give the award to Findlay, Nathan Byrne and Colbie-Kate Ross.

While his condition means he can’t be quite as physically active as his friends and classmates, Findlay hasn’t let it stop him working hard to raise awareness of his condition and raising money for the work of the BHF, both at St Joseph’s and in the wider Helensburgh community.

He regularly chooses the BHF, pacemakers and other heart-related subjects for topics at school, and raises money for the charity every year.

The family are now planning their summer holiday in France – though it’ll be a few weeks before Findlay’s wound has healed and he’s back to full strength.

Debra also singled out the NHS staff who carried out Findlay’s operation and who have been looking after him, and remotely monitoring his condition on a daily basis, ever since his operation.

“The NHS cardiac staff in ward 1E were magnificent,” she said, “and I can’t thank them enough.

“They’re like gods to me, they really are. They dedicate so much time to the children in their care and I really don’t think they get the credit they deserve.

“I owe them everything for what they’ve done for my wee boy.

“They’ve given him a new life and they’ve given the whole family a new start.”

Debra added:

And while his condition means he can’t be quite as physically active as his friends and classmates, he hasn’t let it stop him working hard to raise awareness of his condition and raising money for the work of the BHF, both at St Joseph’s and in the wider Helensburgh community.

He regularly chooses the BHF, pacemakers and other heart-related subjects for topics at school, and raises money for the charity every year.

In 2016 he used the money he’d raised during the year to buy gifts for the young patients in the RHC’s cardiac ward.

“At school he chooses the BHF, pacemakers and other things related to his condition for a lot of his topics.

“He keeps the money he gets from classmates, their parents, family and friends in a wee red tin in his room, and we’ve got a JustGiving page which raises money for the BHF every year.

“At Christmas he decided he wanted to use the money raised during the year to buy wee presents for kids in the cardiac unit at the Royal Hospital for Children, which was just so kind and thoughtful – but it was typical of him.

“He’s a painfully shy boy, but he’s got a heart of gold. For someone with such a weak heart, it’s really the biggest heart on the planet.”

The BHF’s Scottish Supporter Day and Heart Hero awards take place at the University of Edinburgh’s medical school on Tuesday, June 27, when Findlay will be up against Nathan Byrne and Colbie-Kate Ross for the Young Hero award.

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Findlay underwent surgery to have a pacemaker fitted almost as soon as he was born eight weeks early in 2008. And while his condition means he can’t be quite as physically active as his classmates at St Joseph’s Primary School, he has more than made up for that by tirelessly raising awareness of his condition and raising money for the work of the BHF.

Debra told the Advertiser: “Findlay has two scars on his chest and stomach, and his pacemaker sticks out like a matchbox, but he started asking questions about his condition as soon as he could. What’s this scar? What’s that lump? Why don’t you have one?

“I’ve always worn items of BHF jewellery, and Findlay asked where I got them.

“I told him they were from the charity that helps his condition, and funds the research that makes him better.

“His very first event was a sponsored bring-and-buy sale at his nursery, and it all grew from there.”

Debra herself has autoimmune lupus, and antibodies from her blood attacked Findlay’s heart several weeks before he was due to be born, leaving him facing a life dependent on a pacemaker – though if Findlay was a few years older, the outlook would have been even bleaker.

“He went into heart failure inside my body,” Debra said.

“Complete congenital heart block means there’s no electricity getting to the bottom two chambers of his heart, so it can’t beat without a pacemaker.

Findlay’s mum, Debra-Lee Readhead,

A HELENSBURGH youngster with a “heart of gold” is the pride of his home town after he was honoured by one of the UK’s biggest charities.

Findlay Campbell, nine, has been named as one of three “Young Heroes” at the British Heart Foundation’s annual Scottish Heart Heroes awards.

Findlay and his mum Debra Readhead travelled to the University of Edinburgh’s medical school on Tuesday for the ceremony.

As reported in last week’s Advertiser, Findlay, a pupil at St Joseph’s Primary School, was one of three young people in the running for the accolade.

But in the end judges couldn’t separate the trio and decided to jointly give the award to Findlay, Nathan Byrne and Colbie-Kate Ross.

Debra told the Advertiser: “It was an amazing day, and so humbling to hear the individual stories of the people who had been nominated for an award.

“Findlay was great – he was absolutely chuffed to bits.

“One of the other nominees, Nathan, was so deserving. He’s just a baby, and his parents had raised something in the region of £23,000 to get him surgery, and Findlay kept saying that he wanted the baby to get recognition – I think he fell in love with him.

“One award winner lost his 18-year-old daughter when she died suddenly because of an undiagnosed heart condition, and he’s campaigning to have all children screened for heart conditions.

“To be a part of a day full of stories like that, and for the BHF to recognise all these children, was just amazing – we’re really delighted.”

Debra continued: “I was having nightmares before the event – I was asking myself what would happen if he won the award and had to speak. But he went up himself and though he didn’t say much, he did it all on his own.”

Findlay is due to undergo surgery again within the next six months to have the battery in his pacemaker replaced – but that isn’t going to stop him campaigning to raise awareness of the BHF’s work.

Debra added: “He had to stay behind for about an hour afterwards to have all the official pictures taken, and he’ll be doing a number of press events for the BHF. We’re hoping to try and get to other BHF events too.

“But for now we’re looking forward to our family holiday to Disneyland Paris.”