Letter of Thanks:

May 27, 1992 my son, William Chip McGee was born in Charlotte Memorial Hospital with a condition making it necessary for him to be put on the ECMO machine. Soon after birth it became apparent that Chip had merconium aspiration syndrome (MAS). [When a baby develops MAS the inhaled merconium can partially or completely block the baby's airways.] Although most cases of MAS are not serious, in Chip's case it was very, very serious. Chip stopped breathing, and the physicians had to take immediate action. This included suctioning the lungs, treating collapsed lungs, and placing Chip on an Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO). [ECMO is a form of cardiopulmonary bypass, meaning that an artificial heart and lung will temporarily take over to supply blood flow to the baby's body].

At that time, as was explained to us, ECMO was somewhat experimental, and CMC had two of approximately 68 in the world. In order to qualify as a candidate for the ECMO machine, the odds of survival without it needed to be less than 20%. We were told Chip more than qualified for ECMO; in fact one of his attending nurses told me Chip was more in the 11-16% range. If Chip survived, there was a 60% chance he would not have any permanent mental or physical complications from the event. I am so very happy to say he is perfect and whole in every way. GOOD JOB CMC!

Chip turned 17 in May, 6'2", and quite handsome (in my opinion). Chip has played a variety of sports throughout his whole life beginning with t-ball. He is an exceptionally talented musician and intelligent too! Everyday with him is like Christmas.

I want the NICN (neo-natal intensive care nursery) to know how grateful I am to God that Chip was born at CMC for two reasons in particular. One is because at that time you had two of the most innovative equipment in the world. When there was a chance one might not be available quickly enough, your staff prepared us for Chip's potential transfer by helicopter within his first couple of hours. What could have been a red-tape nightmare and a roller coaster ride of emotions, was handled smoothly and with lots of tender loving care. Fortunately we did not have to leave CMC; a machine became available for surgery and prepared for our son, Chip. Secondly, as a "mom" I was even more grateful for the gifted team of surgeons, the attending neonatal team of doctors, and the incredibly loving and attentive ECMO nurses. All were sensitive toward our son's needs and ours as well. I stayed 16 hours a day until he was released two weeks later. Everyone in the NICU made sure I was comfortable physically (having just given birth), and emotionally. They permitted me to be a mom to my son- I sang to him, told him stories about his family, our faith, and our love. They never withheld information from us, and even educated us on this incredible machine attached to our son's jugular vein. Two nurses are required to attend the babies on ECMO twenty four hours a day, seven days a week - working with this machine constantly. It was amazing. These nurses were so knowledgeable! I'm so glad my husband video taped this experience. We returned to CMC's high risk clinic for his appointments at one and two years of age. In fact that is where he took his first steps on his own - while the doctors were discussing his records of progress. Good thing we had our video camera or we would have missed it!

I've seen in these last 16 years just how blessed we are. I remember it was such a frightening experience to see my newborn baby hooked up with so many monitor wires and tubes to a heart and lung machine. I often think of the parents who followed us - and how they must feel when ECMO is their last hope. We understand the decisions that must be made, and remember the emotions from a parent's perspective. If you ever need us, My husband and I are interested in volunteering anyway we can to be of an encouragement to others in our situation.

Again, with all the love and gratitude my heart can hold, I thank you for your quick response and constant care to save my son's life. You are truly a "city of angels".

God bless you.

Cathy McGee