THE parents of a sick baby girl from Limerick have arrived in London for vital treatment.
And thanks to a story published by The Irish Post, a fundraiser is now being planned in Kilburn later in the year to help raise funds to pay their medical expenses.
A benefit night will take place in September organised by the Limerick Association of London, who read about the family's plight in The Irish Post in April.
It will raise money to support the Geoghegan family and baby Orlaith, who is now receiving treatment in Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).
"We'd like to thank you for the coverage in The Irish Post of the Orlaith Geoghegan Benefit Fund," said fund Chairman Gerard Reidy. "It was a great help to us and as a result a benefit night has been arranged in Kilburn by the Limerick Association,"
Six-month old Orlaith was born with the rare condition, Congenital Hyperinsulinism (CHI). The effect of her ailment means that her blood sugar level is dangerously low.
The result is that she is constantly ill, without this treatment.
Unfortunately, there is no treatment available for CHI in Ireland – so the family’s only option was to come to Britain for intense treatment.
“Her blood sugar levels have to be monitored every four hours, she’s on one medication every eight hours, another every 12 hours – it’s very full on,” her father Martin, told The Irish Post last month.
The cost of the treatment is being covered by the HSE in Ireland - but these costs do not extend past her stay in hospital.
Martin, and his wife Jackie, grew concerned that they would be unable to be by their daughter's side during these vital few months in London.
In response to her parents’ anguish, friends set up the Baby Orlaith Geoghegan Support Fund, to raise money for treatment, as well as enough money so that her mother Jackie can stay in London with her.
Now Orlaith is a month into the first cycle of treatment and her mother Jackie is staying between friend’s houses and a hotel near Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) when not at her daughter’s bedside.
Adding to their anxiety, Martin and Jackie are also parents to two-year-old Saoirse, and must balance their parental duties with work, while based in different countries.
Martin and Saoirse now fly over to London at weekends to visit Jackie and Orlaith, while Martin works at the Shannon Foynes Port Company during the week.
A fundraiser in Rathkeale, near the Geoghegan’s family home in Kilcolman, raised more than €10,000 for the initial phase of treatment.
It is hoped that the benefit night in London on September 26 will raise enough money to keep the family together as treatment continues.
Martin and Jackie thanked the Irish in Britain for their support during the build-up to getting Orlaith to GOSH.
“We would like to take this opportunity to extend our gratitude to and say thank you for the overwhelming support received from the communities in Limerick and further afield," they said.
The benefit night will be held this on Saturday, September 26 by the Limerick Association of London.
For enquiries contact secretary John Giltenan on 07956 855957.
See More: Baby Orlaith, Featured, Orlaith Geoghegan
