Grieving mum whose son died of a stroke said cold cot allowed them to feel like a 'family'

A mother whose son died of a stroke in the womb has said a hospital cold cot let them “be a family for a short time” even though she “did not get to hear his cry or see the colour of his eyes.” Allannah Kofi (22) gave birth to her son Idris in a stillbirth at Leicester General Hospital and was able to spend five days with him in the hospital’s bereavement suite.

She said his death would have been “a lot harder to deal with” if the cold cot was not an option. A cold cot is a refrigerated cot that allows families to spend time with their deceased baby.

Allannah, who is currently studying events management at Sheffield Hallam University had the stillbirth in December last year. She said: “Idris died due to a stroke in the womb two weeks before his due date.

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“We were able to spend five days in the hospital in the bereavement suite. They do say if you want to take the baby home you can, but I couldn’t really think straight, I wanted to stay where I was.

Allannah from Melton said a family friend of hers had a stillbirth in Italy and that she only had 20 minutes with her baby. “The cold cot was not even an option and she has very vague memories of her child,” Allannah said.

“If I only got the fraction of time that I spent with my son it would have been a lot harder to deal with. For me it felt like I got to know him more, even though I did not get to hear his cry or see the colour of his eyes.

“We bathed him and put him into different outfits. Because of the cold cot it gave us the opportunity to be a family for a short time.”

Allannah wants to raise enough money to provide a cold cot for a hospital in the UK in Idris’ name. The cot, which costs £2800 is provided by charities such as Abigail’s Footsteps.

“It is people that have been through trauma and realise the importance of it and that’s what I want to do now,” she said. “[Its] Absolutely I think for my own position and mental health but I will feel more comfortable that there’s something in my son’s name and legacy.”

Allannah is hoping to compete in a charity boxing match to raise money for Abigail’s Footsteps, a charity that provides cold cots for hospitals across the UK. She said “Boxing is something that has been in my family, my grandad before he passed away used to be a boxer.

“My brother did a charity fight and my fitness isn’t what it used to be since I had a baby. I want to put everything into something positive and do him [Idris] proud.

“It would give me peace of mind knowing I can help others while they are in the worst situation they can possibly be in.”

According to baby loss charity Abigail’s Footsteps, with one in every 200 babies being stillborn (around 14 stillborn and neonatal deaths per day in the UK), Britain’s figures are among the worst in the developed world. David Ward, chief executive of the charity, said: “When we had Abigail we only had two or three hours with her, the Abi Cot allows people to have two or three days if they wish.

“Abigail’s Footsteps is committed to providing an Abi Cooling Cot to all hospitals across the UK. Each special cot costs £2,800 and thanks to the generosity of those who fundraise for us we have been able to donate over 140 cots to hospitals, hospices and funeral directors across the UK.”

To donate to Allannah’s fundraiser, search ‘Help us place cold cots in hospitals for bereaved parents’ on the gofundme website.

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