At 4 months old in October 2006 this very normal little baby girl suffered a Tonic Clonic seizure straight after a bath. Her parents were told that it was a febrile convulsion and more than likely this would be a "one off" occurrence. In December 2006 Scarlett suffered another of these seizures and then for the next 2 years followed a journey with her family, that looking at her no-one would ever believe. In October 2007, Scarlett was finally diagnosed with an extremely rare neurological life limiting disorder known as SMEI, Severe Myoclonic Epilepsy of Infancy, hence the name SMEI; Scarlett Mackinnon Endowment Initiative.

Scarlett is one of the many brave and strong children that lead their daily lives without complaint with some of life’s most challenging experiences. She is no stranger to needles, life support, oxygen, intubation and extended periods in hospital. Even with Scarlett’s very limited speech she still manages to point at an ambulance and say "taxi"...

There are hundreds of children like Scarlett that pass through our wards on a daily basis, and parents like Scarlett’s who spend hours sitting watching the workings of the ward, trying to pass the time, are united in their admiration of the hard work and daily battles that all NHS staff are tasked with.

They constantly battle everyday to provide an up to date operational facility that is well equipped to give all the children the best possible care within the boundaries set by their tight budgets and rules. They do the best that they can often with antiquated equipment that sometimes requires more than gentle encouragement to come to life, in the opinion of many, a huge waste of time and valuable resources.

It is evident that there is a shortfall in the NHS for equipment necessary to ensure the effective and smooth running of the ward. Together with some dedicated and motivated individuals SMEI charity was founded to support our children!

We also support the children and families who, like Scarlett live with SMEI by providing a online forum and support & information network (under construction - due to go live in June 2009).