Dad and daughter saved by the same heart surgeon

When Colin learned he needed open heart surgery for the second time, some of his worries were eased when he discovered a familiar face would be in the operating theatre.

Just two years earlier, Dr Ram Dhannapuneni had carried out a life-saving heart operation on his newborn daughter Edith at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool.

"We've jokingly called him the family surgeon," said Colin, from St Helens.

"I feel very privileged that I can shake hands with a surgeon who has quite literally touched both mine and my daughter's hearts."

Colin has shared his story as Alder Hey celebrates more than 75 years of children's cardiac surgery in Liverpool.

It was one of Europe's first centres dedicated to children's heart surgery when it opened at Royal Liverpool Children's Hospital on Myrtle Street before the service moved to Alder Hey in 1990.

Alder Hey is now one of the largest paediatric cardiac centres in the UK, caring for children and young people with complex heart conditions from across the country and beyond.

Colin first had surgery on Myrtle Street as a baby after he was born with a chronic heart disease known as Shone Syndrome.

In 2018, Colin and his wife Karen welcomed their daughter Edith - who was born with a severe hypoplastic left heart syndrome - into the world.

But within the first four months of her life, she needed two operations, led by Dr Dhannapuneni.

Two years later, Colin, who was 36 at the time, was back in the operating theatre himself.

"It brings great reassurance, knowing that you've got this fantastic hospital looking after children and then just a little bit down the road, you've got Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital that's looking after adults as well," he said.

"It's doing lots and lots of really innovative things, it's really leading the way in certain practices."

Over the past 75 years, thousands of young patients have undergone life-saving procedures.

BBC North West Tonight has also been following the journey of three-year-old Raffy, who was born with a hole in his heart.

His latest operation was also carried out by Dr Dhannapuneni.

"I couldn't say thank you enough that it's all gone as well as it can do," said Phil, 39, following his son's recent surgery.

"I think the operation was quicker than we expected.

"The outcome seems to have been pretty good. They've done an amazing job."

Dr Dhannapuneni, who is the centre's head of cardiac surgery, said he was incredibly proud of what had been achieved over more than 75 years.

He has personally carried out 2,500 surgeries on children and 1,000 on adults.

"Liverpool was one of the earliest [centres] in the world to start operating on children, way back in 1950," he said.

"Alder Hey Children's Hospital is the second biggest centre in UK and Ireland, performing heart surgeries.

"We are having better outcomes, more children operated with heart surgery [are] surviving now than before."

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