A University of Western Australia Master’s student who survived complex surgery as a newborn is now helping lead research to improve outcomes for babies facing similar life-saving procedures.
Mia Cahill was just hours old when she underwent life-saving surgery in Dublin for gastroschisis, a rare congenital condition where a baby’s intestines and other organs develop outside the body through a hole in the abdominal wall.
Now calling Perth home and completing her Master of Public Health at UWA, 23-year-old Ms Cahill joined the FROG (Focused Research priorities to improve Outcomes and Guide care) project led by Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg, Chair of Paediatric Anaesthesia at UWA and Perth Children’s Hospital (PCH), and Dr Rebecca Thomas, Consultant Neonatologist at PCH.
Both are members of the UWA Institute for Paediatric Perioperative Excellence which aims to give a voice to families facing similar challenges.
“My parents fought endlessly for me to get to where I am today and while I’m fortunate to live a normal life now, many babies born with conditions requiring major surgery aren’t as lucky,” Ms Cahill said.
