Meet Luke
Luke loves the outdoors, having campfires with his family and playing with his dog, Ripley! After Luke was born with a congenital heart defect, his family is grateful to have the hub for pediatric heart surgery in Western Canada right in their backyard.
While pregnant with their second child, Luke’s parents learned their baby would be born with a congenital heart defect. Living in the Northwest Territories at the time, they had to wait a few weeks for an appointment with the cardiology team at the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton to further understand their unborn child’s condition. Luke’s cardiology team took the time to explain his condition to his parents and how they were going to care for him. Throughout the pregnancy, the couple would fly to Edmonton once a month to meet with the experts at the Stollery and for further monitoring of Luke’s heart.
Unfortunately, Luke’s mom went into pre-term labour and was medevaced to Edmonton where she was placed on bedrest for the remaining three months of her pregnancy. As soon as Luke was born, he was rushed to the Stollery where he had an emergency stent procedure done on the spot in the neonatal intensive care unit. Three days later, Luke had an open-heart surgery to repair his heart.
Since Luke’s surgery, his family has relocated to Alberta to be closer to the Stollery. Today, Luke is closely monitored by his team at the Stollery to make sure his heart remains healthy. Luke may need another open-heart surgery in the future, and his parents know the Stollery is with them every step of the way.