Meet Cameron (7), he loves playing footy, cars, and being outside in nature. Shortly after birth, he was whisked away for heart surgery, and later diagnosed with Kabuki syndrome, a rare disease causing extensive medical issues affecting his eyes, hearing, kidneys, heart, and muscles.
Cameron, mum Sarah and sister Bailee, now visit PCH 2-3 times per month and receive additional support from the hospital’s world-first Rare Care Centre.
Cameron’s mum Sarah said: “Kabuki affects the whole body in different ways. So not one person is the same. Basically, he had two major issues with his heart. And if they weren’t fixed, he wasn’t going to make it.
“When we were in the hospital, we didn’t have a space to go. We didn’t have a greenspace to chill out in and get away from the beeps and the voiceovers on the speaker and just bright lights of the hospital. This greenspace just means that between appointments, we don’t have to sit in the waiting room.
“Cameron likes being outdoors, loves it. If we go inside, he tends to get really loud. He associates being indoors and hospital settings as a negative sometimes, and I don’t blame him. So, it’s great that PCHF is funding this project.
“For us, having that Indigenous background and heritage, it’s very meaningful and spiritual to have this space we can feel comfortable in, but at the hospital. It will be amazing just to recenter and ground ourselves, because that’s the most important thing. When you’re grounded, the healing starts.”
With your help, we can give WA’s sick kids, like Cameron, the gift of nature this Christmas. Every donation up until December 31 will help us to fund the ongoing maintenance of the Greenspace. Donate today.
Sarah added: “Any donation helps, it will help the kids at the hospital thrive and it will help the parents to feel more included, and more safe.”
Thanks to our partners for making the Greenspace upgrade project possible, including major sponsor Rio Tinto as well as Hassell, BGIS, CDI Group, Soft Earth Noongar Cultural Partners and the QEII Medical Centre Trust.