Cardiac course in memory of baby Finlay Eric

Ruth and Finlay Macleod raised nearly £40,000 in memory of their son Finlay Eric, who tragically passed away from an undiagnosed heart defect in May 2021 when he was nearly five months old.

The family are passionate about ensuring other babies with cardiac conditions receive a diagnosis as soon as medically possible, and the money they have raised has funded the course called ‘Think HEART: Know the signs of a potential congenital heart defect’.

NHS Western Isles have welcomed this “lifesaving online course”, which is available now, and will be encouraging staff to undertake the training. Ruth and Finlay’s fundraising had previously enabled the purchase of six pulse oximetry machines, which identify the low levels of blood oxygen that can be a sign of congenital heart disease.

A baby is born with a serious heart condition every two hours in the UK. However, not all congenital heart defects can or will be detected during routine scanning.

The ‘Think HEART’ course is designed for health professionals and aims to teach the five key signs of an undiagnosed heart defect, to enable early detection and potentially save lives.

Finlay and Ruth said: “We want to thank all who have donated to Tiny Tickers in Finlay Eric’s memory. Your donations have given us the privilege of creating a lasting legacy for our beautiful boy, with the lifesaving aim of educating families and health professionals alike to ‘Think HEART’.

"Finlay Eric is loved and sorely missed every moment of every day, and we treasure every precious memory of our time together. It gives us some comfort in the midst of our heartache to know that we can give hope to families throughout the UK in Finlay Eric’s name.”

The charity Tiny Tickers, which aims to improve the early detection and care of babies with CHD, launched the course at the Royal College of General Practitioners’ Annual Conference in Liverpool earlier this month.

NHS Western Isles Chief Executive Gordon Jamieson said: “My thoughts are with Finlay Eric’s family. Sincere thanks for what they have achieved.

“This is a vital resource for any health professional working with young babies – including doctors, nurses, midwives, midwifery support workers, health visitors and others – teaching the key signs that a baby may have an undiagnosed heart defect.

"Timely detection can improve a baby’s chances of survival and their longer-term quality of life and this course helps health professionals to ensure that heart defects for those babies in their care are detected and treated as early as possible.

“We would like to sincerely thank Tiny Tickers, and Finlay and Ruth Macleod, who funded the course in memory of their precious baby son, Finlay Eric, who tragically passed away from an undiagnosed heart defect. This lasting legacy has the potential to save many lives.”​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​