Jamie Dallimore
Jamie Dallimore was first diagnosed with aortic stenosis as a young child. The family GP, Dr Andrew Bonney, first picked up Jamie’s heart murmur when he was about one year old. As a result, he had been seeing a cardiologist all his life to monitor the progress of his heart condition.
Just before Christmas last year Jamie was told he had between one and five years to live unless he had surgery for this heart condition.
“I got a big pit in my stomach when I heard what the doctor said. I had no symptoms, only shortness of breath, so you wouldn’t know,” said Jamie.
“Going to see Paul Bannon for the first time was a fairly daunting experience. We knew we were there to discuss the process of the operation, so he gave us the full impact of what surgery would involve and made it all so real,” said Michele Dallimore, Jamie’s Mum.
“Before that, we were able to keep it at arms length, so to speak. It was very confronting and emotional for all of us. BUT we all walked away having full confidence in Paul as a surgeon. If Jamie had to be operated on, we were happy to have this guy do it.
“We now see the results of the surgery and how well Jamie has recovered and we know that it has a lot to do with the skill of the surgeon and his team and the care Jamie received while he was in hospital. We will be forever grateful to Paul and his team and the staff at Strathfield Private Hospital for looking after Jamie so well.”
“We feel overwhelming gratitude because they have given our son a second chance at life,” Michele added.
The surgery was a tremendous success and Jamie is now getting on with his life. He has just been accepted to study Nursing at the University of Tasmania at their Darlinghurst Campus and he will be attached to St Vincent’s and Mater Hospitals. Jamie now feels he can start his life afresh.
That gratitude prompted the Dallimores to want to give something back. Steve, Jamie’s dad, and his two older brothers, Tim and Jono, are all keen musicians. They came up with the idea of pooling their talents and joining with other musician friends to put on a blues concert to raise money for The Baird Institute. This was a tremendously successful event raising nearly $7000!
Jamie is on a bit of a high at the moment. He turned nineteen in October and was heard to say “I am so happy I made it to 19!”. He has now passed the six month anniversary date of his operation – a very big milestone.
Our best wishes go to Jamie, and our most sincere thanks to the Dallimore Family for all their support and generosity.
The Baird Institute researches coronary artery bypass surgery and has funded a PHD on the development of a vascular bypass conduit using synthetic human elastin. These techniques and advancements will directly help people like Jamie.
