Last year we celebrated Eid Al-Fitr with special gifts for our patients at our Children’s Hospital. The gifts were generously donated by Muslim Aid, funded by its generous supporters.

With such a diverse breadth of patients treated at our hospital, it’s important for us to be able to mark all religious holidays where we can.

Four-year-old Fatima, from Birmingham, was thrilled to receive her gift. After three weeks in hospital, Fatima was hoping to be home in time for Eid to celebrate with her older sister, but a complication kept her in hospital longer than expected.

Fatima was born prematurely at 27 weeks and shortly after suffered a brain haemorrhage. As a result she now has hydrocephalus, a condition in which an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) occurs within the brain. This typically causes increased pressure inside the skull. As a baby, Fatima had a shunt inserted, which helps to drain the fluid and relieve the pressure.

Her most recent trip to our hospital was due to a build-up of CSF fluid in her bowel. Fatima had keyhole surgery to remove the blockage and replace the shunt she’d had since birth.