Meggan with mum Kirstie.

“We have eight per cent of the British population in Scotland but a third of land mass,” says Mr Driver. “That means we get patients travelling much further for appointments.
Shetland
“I’d a referral recently from Shetland but if the problem isn’t serious and I can just take a quick look on the screen then we’ve saved them a long journey.”
The demand for specialist consultants is so high in Scotland that they are often needed to travel themselves, giving up whole days for one-hour meetings in other cities. 
“We’re looking for Sunday Post readers to donate enough money to buy another telemedicine set for the X-ray department,” explains Mr Driver.
The cost of the Tandberga telemedicine equipment is around £9000 and, although it’s a big initial outlay, the money and time saved for patients and doctors makes it an invaluable piece of kit.
The Farrell family certainly think so. 
“When Meggan was diagnosed as a baby we were transferred to Yorkhill in Glasgow,” explains mum Kirstie.
“But as she became older their facilities haven’t been able to deal with her problems. Chris Driver treats all her bowel and bladder problems and Southern General deal with the shunt for her hydrocephalus. 
“Meggan had pioneering surgery at Aberdeen and now we only have to travel to see Chris two or three times a year. It’s a whole day I have to take off work. It’s also quite daunting, you’re going up for test results — and it’s a long road to have a sick child in the back of the car. 
Worry
“The video linking system took that worry away because we go to Cumbernauld and speak to Chris almost immediately.”
As a result of the consultation Chris and Meggan had on the day The Sunday Post visited Aberdeen Children’s Hospital she was told she’d need to come up for an operation in the following weeks. 
“We rely on the system now,” adds Kirstie. “There have been a few times when we’ve thought Meggan had an infection in her side and rather than drive to Aberdeen we can get a nurse to take a swab and Chris can have a look at the wound through the scope.”
Thanks to the generosity of our readers, more families like the Farrells will hopefully have the opportunity to be treated anywhere in the country.

IF YOU have a special reason for contributing to or raising funds for our appeal then we’d like to hear from you. 
It could be that you’d like to thank caring staff for the treatment they’ve provided in your hour of need. Or perhaps a relative spent time in one of Scotland’s children’s hospitals and the experience has left a lasting impression on your family’s life.
Whatever the reason, please let us know. 
We’d be delighted to share your experiences with our readers. And, who knows, it may inspire others to follow in your fund-raising footsteps.

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