Caireann Gildea’s family reunites with paramedics who tried to save her life

An eight-year-old girl died from an “extremely rare” bleed. But there is a lifesaving message to learn from the tragedy.

A Point Cook family who tragically lost their daughter from a rare medical condition two years ago has thanked the paramedics who tried to save the eight-year-old’s life, as her legacy lives on through others.

Caireann Gildea was an “extremely happy”, “magical” and “kind-hearted” child who “was full of life and loved being alive”.

So when the healthy, thoughtful, caring and friendly grade three student suffered from a rare internal bleed in her brain on the morning of March 1, 2020, it rocked her close-knit family.

Caireann’s mum, Kathleen Gildea, said “it came completely out of the blue”.

Caireann Gildea suffered an extremely rare brain bleed in 2020. Photos: Supplied

The day before her daughter had won a 200-metre race at Little Athletics and had contentedly skipped home from a barbecue with friends that night.

But that Sunday morning Caireann – who had been excited for a friend’s birthday party that day –complained that her “head was exploding.

She lay down on the corner of the bed and within moments her condition seriously deteriorated – her face turned blue, she struggled to bleed and became increasingly unresponsive.

Her dad, Neal, started cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while her mum phoned Triple Zero (000).

Paramedics arrived to find Caireann in cardiac arrest.

In what they described as a “complex case”, they resuscitated the young girl before transporting her to the Royal Children’s Hospital.

Tests and brain scans revealed Caireann had experienced a ruptured Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM) in her brainstem.

This “extremely rare” rupture, for which there had been no prior warning signs, had immediately affected the little girl’s heart rate and breathing, her mum said.

“The neurosurgeon told us that even if it had happened right there in the hospital that there wouldn’t have been much they could do,” Ms Gildea said.

Caireann’s family donated her organs. She has already saved three lives.

But the fact her heart was restarted before she was rushed to hospital meant Caireann could be kept on life support for two days to give her family – including her beloved older and younger brothers and doting parents – time to say goodbye.

It also gave her extended family the opportunity to travel from Ireland and New Zealand to the hospital to say their goodbyes in person.

Caireann died on March 3.

A lover of “all animals and creatures”, with a big heart and keen desire to help others, Caireann’s family decided to donate her organs, believing it was what she would have wanted.

Viable because of the early CPR she received, her donated organs have so far saved three lives.

Her kidneys were received by a man and woman who had both been on dialysis, while a teenage boy received her liver.

Two of her heart valves remain in storage for possible future transplants.

Keeping Caireann’s memory alive is important to her family – they talk about her everyday and on July 26 celebrated what would have been her 11th birthday.

“As a parent you think your child is the best but there was always something about Caireann that was special,” Ms Gildea said.

It was why their recent reunion with the paramedics who attended their home that day and seeing a plaque honouring her – on permanent display at the Point Cook branch – was so important to them.

Caireann Gildea’s family reunited with the Point Cook paramedics who tried to save her life.

Aside from thanking the paramedics for their efforts to save their girl, the family also presented the branch with a $4000 donation.

The money was raised by the Gildea family after Caireann’s death – her family set up a fundraiser for the organisations that supported them, raising just over $9000 for Ambulance Victoria, Red Nose Australia and Caireann’s primary school.

“The donation is incredibly selfless, coming from a truly wonderful family,” AV Team Manager Blixa Webster said.

“It is actually the first time a community donation has been made to the Point Cook branch, so it’s a big part of our almost-14-year history in the area.”

Mr Webster said meeting the family was a “great lift for the team” and was something that would be “talked about forever”.

The money will be put towards training and simulation equipment for the branch, as well as upgrading their paediatric training capability.

With around 19 Victorians suffering cardiac arrest each day and only one in 10 surviving, Mr Webster emphasised the importance of learning CPR to be equipped with the skills to “start the chain of survival” before paramedics arrive.

Ms Gildea said their loss would “never go away” but keeping her daughter’s memory alive was crucial for her.

“One of our biggest fears is that she will be forgotten or that people will stop mentioning her name,” she said.

“We try to keep her legacy going because I know she would have wanted that and we want her to always be remembered.”

• For further information about CPR, visit: www.ambulance.vic.gov.au/call push-shock/