Baby boy who has spent the majority of his life in hospital home for Christmas
A baby boy who has been in hospital for the majority of his life is preparing to spend his first Christmas at home after finally being discharged.
Bertie Melly weighed just 1lb 10oz when he was born prematurely at 24 weeks in May 2024.
He has undergone five operations in his short life after being diagnosed with a potentially life-threatening illness affecting his intestines.
After more than 500 days in hospital Bertie is now at home with his parents, Phoebe and Callum Melly, who describe their son as a “remarkable little human being”.
The family, from Bromley, is planning to spend time with their loved ones over Christmas.
Bertie was born after a 17-minute labour at St Thomas’ Hospital in London and was diagnosed with necrotising enterocolitis, a serious condition which causes tissue in the intestines to become inflamed and start to die.
He had his first surgery on his bowel at 10 days old.
Bertie spent the first six months of his life in neonatal intensive care before being moved to Evelina London Children’s Hospital, with his parents staying at the nearby Ronald McDonald House.
Mr Melly, 37, told the Press Association that Bertie is the “happiest child you will ever meet”.
He said: “Considering everything he’s been through – if you see his hands, his hands are covered in scars from the amount of cannulas he’s had, he’s got gaping scars all over his his abdomen – and he wakes up beaming, goes to bed, beaming.
“He’s a remarkable little human being.”
Mrs Melly, 34, puts her son’s character down to the “love and affection” he received from doctors and nurses.
She told PA: “In the NICU and in the paediatric ward at the Evelina, everyone just loved him and genuinely really cared for him, which was so nice, and I think that’s really helped him to get to where he is today.”
Bertie was allowed home in November after 547 days in hospital.
According to the Evelina’s neonatal team, the average length of time spent in NICU for a baby born at 24 weeks is around six months.
Mrs Melly told PA her son is “thriving” since coming home.
She added: “He’s physically developing really well, I think he’s not that far off walking now.
“He’s climbing up the stairs, on and off the sofa, and getting a bit more confident with his standing.”
Mr Melly said: “We’ve only been home for four weeks, but it’s almost a distant memory now being at the hospital, which is really nice, just so normal.”
The couple have taken Bertie to see Father Christmas, although Mrs Melly said he was “more interested in all the decorations”.
She is looking forward to buying her son presents this year as the family were limited on space at the hospital.
Mrs Melly also told PA her son is “making some really good progress” medically.
She said that while “there is always a risk that he could get a bowel obstruction” later in life, it is not a certainty.
Following his operations, Bertie has what is known as a short gut, as he lost around 70% of his small intestine.
He has also been tube-fed milk and has an IV line that gives him vitamins, minerals and amino acids straight into his bloodstream.
However, the family’s goal is to now up the amount of solids the toddler is eating so he can be eventually weaned off both lines.
Mr Melly said he is hopeful his son can have the IV nutrition line – which goes straight to Bertie’s heart – removed in six months to a year.
He told PA: “If he can get that line out, then it means we can have a pretty much normal life until he’s eating enough to get the milk pump removed as well.”
Mrs Melly said she was initially “very relaxed” when she went to hospital in May 2024 after experiencing some bleeding, as an assessment deemed her at low risk of actually giving birth.
She was told she may need to stay in for a week for bed rest and then would be sent home for the remainder of her pregnancy.
“We didn’t know what was ahead, and I actually think that was probably a good thing, because we literally just took each day as it came,” she said.
“We didn’t think too far ahead. We tackled one problem at a time.”
Mrs Melly said Bertie’s “biggest” health issue at birth was his bowel, but the family also “went through a lot” with his breathing.
“He was intubated for a long time, and there was times when his lungs were fully about to give up,” she added.
“You just can’t think too far ahead – there were times I wouldn’t have even thought we’d be sat here today, and we’re at home with him.
“So in that sense, it’s comforting to know that, although you’ve got those dark fears, actually, we’ve made so much progress in 18 months, so who knows where we’ll be in a year’s time as well.”
The couple said they are “eternally grateful” to the team at the Evelina for everything they did for Bertie.
Mr Melly added: “They saved his life at the end of the day, on countless occasions.”
Iain Yardley, consultant paediatric and neonatal surgeon at Evelina London, who was involved in Bertie’s care, said: “Bertie has faced many, many challenges in his short life.
“He and his parents have faced these challenges with extraordinary grace and courage.
“Seeing him go home is what we all have been working for and we could not be more pleased for him and his family.”
Published: by Radio NewsHub