Jess Garioch and Beau Hederics’ first-time parent experience wasn’t as straight-forward as most. Following the birth of their baby boy, Darcy, it would be weeks before they got to snuggle into their newborn properly.
Darcy was born with Tracheo-Oesophageal Fistula (TOF) and Oesophageal Atresia (OA), a rare congenital condition of the esophagus (food pipe) and trachea (airway) that affects one in every 3500 babies.
Darcy was born in Mildura but was flown to the RCH for surgery by the time he was 20 hours old.
When it was determined that Darcy couldn’t breathe on his own he was fitted with a tracheostomy – a device to open his airways so he could breathe.
Perhaps a lesser known service provided at the RCH is speech pathology, a profession that assists people across all ages with communication, and eating and drinking.
RCH Speech Pathologist Rachel Kerr became involved in Darcy’s journey early on when it was obvious that he had lost the instinct to suck and swallow after not being allowed to drink orally due to surgery. Rachel has been by their side ever since. Darcy has also had support from their local speech pathologist.
“Rachel worked with us while we were in the RCH and then referred us to a speech pathologist in Mildura on our return home. We were told about an app to learn key sign language, different to usual sign language, so Darcy could learn to communicate with us. The moment he was able to sign mum and dad was really emotional, it was just amazing. The combination of the App, our local speech pathology and Rachel at the RCH means Darcy is developing just like any other child and is preparing him for when he is able to speak,” Jess said.
After four months in hospital, Darcy is now a busy 19-month-old toddler and is home in Mildura. Darcy and Jess are part of the Royal Children’s Hospital’s Telehealth program, which means Jess can keep in touch with Rachel through video-conferencing so they don’t need to make the six hour trip to Melbourne for appointments.
“We would be lost without this service and the RCH. I can talk to Rachel whenever I need to, she has been a huge support through this whole process and she will be with us until we don’t need her anymore,” says Jess.
Eventually, when his trachea get strong, Darcy’s tracheostomy will come out and his speech development will begin.
From support to learn how to feed orally in NICU, to talking to teenagers as they undergo awake brain surgery, Speech Pathology is part of a range of patient care at the RCH.
What is Speech Pathology? 
Our Speech Pathology team at the RCH asses, treat and support children who have difficulty communicating, including difficulties with speaking, listening, understanding language, reading, writing and stuttering. Children and young people who experience difficulty swallowing food and drink safely can also be helped by a speech pathologist.
How does speech pathology help patients at the RCH?
From teaching how to feed orally in NICU, to talking to teenagers as they undergo awake brain surgery, speech pathology have a broad range of contributions to life at RCH.
The team offer autism assessment, saliva control clinic, rehabilitation following an acquired brain injury and do voice education for children and young people who are transitioning gender, just to name a few.
Our speech pathologists also work closely with ENT, respiratory, nurses and paediatricians within the RCH.
What sorts of health conditions do speech pathologists work with?
Brain tumours, cerebral palsy, craniofacial syndrome, epilepsy, autism, cleft palate, movement disorders, cardiac and respiratory conditions and patients with vocal dysfunction.