A one-month-old boy with a congenital heart condition has been airlifted from an NHS hospital to Rome to undergo life-saving surgery.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni personally intervened so the child could travel, it has been reported.
Photos of the transfer show an Italian ambulance on board a military cargo plane, reported to have been sent to collect the boy from Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.
The child’s parents said doctors told them crucial treatment was not available in this country, The Times reported.
Hospital staff reportedly agreed to allow the boy to be moved after seeing plans for his transfer and treatment.
A lawyer representing the baby’s family thanked “all those who worked hard to transfer the little [boy]”, a translation of a post on his X account said.
Un grande grazie da parte della famiglia a tutti coloro che si son prodigati per il trasferimento del piccolo D. M. di neppure un mese dal Regno Unito a Roma. Ora preghiamo che il delicato intervento chirurgico vada per il meglio. 🙏
— Simone Pillon (@SimoPillon) April 24, 2024
Gli italiani sono fatti così: amano la vita... pic.twitter.com/4N7VtML1WQ
“A big thank you from the family to all those who worked hard to transfer the little [boy], less than a month old, from the United Kingdom to Rome,” said Simone Pillon.
“Italians are like that: they love life,” he added.
The baby’s Italian father told The Times: “My wife and I are very happy and relieved… [Meloni and the Italian authorities] actively took action to make the transfer of our son possible.”
The father also thanked the British medical team “for smoothly authorising and supporting us and our son through this process”.
A University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust spokesperson confirmed: “We worked with Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital to support the safe transfer of a newborn patient to Rome.
“Due to patient confidentiality, it would not be appropriate to go into specific details regarding a patient’s care.”
The Bambino Gesù hospital, which is controlled by the Vatican, is the same hospital offered to treat a British baby girl with a rare mitochondrial disease last year.
Eight-month-old Indi Gregory was at the centre of a legal fight before her life-support treatment was withdrawn and she died at a hospice.
Her parents Dean Gregory and Claire Staniforth lost legal bids in the High Court and Court of Appeal for specialists to keep treating her.
The couple also failed in a bid to transfer Indi to the Rome hospital for specialist treatment, with the Italian government later offering to pay for Indi’s funeral.
