New group for parents of children with congenital heart disease

A new coffee morning support group for parents of children born with congenital heart disease (CHD) is to be established in Athlone.

The “Heart Family Fridays” meet-ups are supported by the Heart Children national charity and will take place on the last Friday of every month, in the Radisson Blu Hotel, from 10-12pm. The first meeting will be on Friday, March 26. These are informal, drop-in meetings, run by parents for parents. They are free to attend and anyone with a child or family member with the condition can come along and draw on the support of other parents.

Each year, some 500 to 600 babies are born in Ireland with heart issues that result when the structure of the organ does not develop properly during pregnancy. These children have congenital heart disease, a term applied to over forty different anomalies in the structure of the heart and the nearby blood vessels, some of which can be repaired but, the more complex conditions, require life-long medical management. One in every 100 children born worldwide have CHD and it is the most common birth defect worldwide.

The meetings will be run by Fiona Fallon from Roscommon. Fiona has CHD and two of her three children were also born with the condition. Fiona wants to offer support to help break down the cycle of isolation which many parents face when they have a child with a serious illness. She says: “Meeting with other parents can provide psychological support, access to an informal information network and practical advice. By being there for one another, I hope we can provide answers to many questions for parents”.