Child with heart and kidney defects etc

[MommyMaggie]

I currently live in Sweden, but we are moving to London in a couple of weeks. I've never been to England so I don't know much about the health care system or associations.

Both my children have heart defects. The older one has VSD (ventricular septum defect) and ASD (atrial septum defect) and the younger one only has a tiny ASD and asthma. The older one is now 2,5 years old and he has some problems gaining weight, so we go to a nutritionist to keep track of the weight and to get prescriptions for special diet food. At the moment he is also screened for milk protein allergies and he also has a kidney defect.

What I would like to know is how it works with these kinds of defects in England? Here, we go to 2 different hospitals for check-ups once a year (one for the heart and one for the kidney). We also meet with the nutritionist every 6 months and the Allergy doctors for the allergies and asthma. Is there a special kind of hospital for kids in London where we will check all of the above things or is it divided into heart/urological/nutritional/etc? Does it matter where you live in London? If yes, where is the best place to live to get the best possible treatment?

Also, is there any association for children with heart defects? It would be nice to meet people in the same situation as we are in. In Sweden the association organizes meetings for parents and children for example.

Could anyone enlighten me in these matters? Thanks

Didn't want you to go unanswered. Whilst I don't have personal experience of those issues you mention, I can tell you that there Great Ormond Street hospital for children (part of UCHL) in central London.

Google it and it will tell you more.

You will need to register with your local GP and be referred.

You probably ought to contact the Swedish embassy for further advice on having your children's medical records translated etc.

Thanks skandi1! I will contact the embassy tomorrow and see what they advise as well. I didn't even think of that possibility!

Just to put your mind at rest Great Ormond Street is one of the world's leading children's hospitals and is very highly regarded.
This is their website.

I hope your move goes well.

Hope move goes well and another here that agrees great ormond st is great.

Also just to let you know ASD means autistic spectrum disorder here, so don't get. Too confused.

The Evelina Children's hospital (part of St Thomas' Hospital) also deals with heart and renal patients too and could be another option.

My youngest has a vsd and possibly an asd although currently neither affect him. He is on annual check ups at the John Radcliffe in Oxford (even though we live in Cornwall) because I wanted to keep seeing the same team. We were given the choice to move to different hospitals when we moved.

Sorry, I am only phone and accidentally deleted my last sentence which was that I assume you will be also be able to choose who you see and where. It is not based on geography in our experience.

Thanks a lot everyone! I feel a bit less stressed about this now. Haven't checked with the doctors over here yet. We are waiting for appointments during the next two weeks to sort everything out. Thanks again! :)