The Southern Tier Heart Walk, scheduled for Sunday, April 27, at the Oakdale Commons, is preparing to welcome participants from various walks of life. Team UHS is participating once again in this annual event.
Each year, the American Heart Association honors a local resident, and this year the chosen honoree is Olivia Reynolds. When Olivia was just 13 days old, she required emergent open-heart surgery. Now a healthy 5-year-old, Olivia is the daughter of Stacy Baranski, a lymphedema therapist at UHS Binghamton General Hospital.
Olivia’s health journey began immediately after her birth on June 4, 2019, at UHS Wilson Medical Center. Soon after she was born, a nurse noticed that she was turning blue, and she was promptly taken to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). After undergoing several tests, doctors identified that Olivia had a transposition of the great arteries with a ventricular septal defect (VSD).
To stabilize her condition, Olivia was transported to Syracuse for a balloon atrial septostomy, allowing her blood to mix and get oxygen until she could undergo open-heart surgery. The necessary arterial switch operation was conducted in Rochester on June 17, 2019.
Today, Olivia is thriving. She participates in kindergarten, playing soccer, and has plans to take up lacrosse. Her annual echocardiograms and cardiology follow-ups remain positive, with her VSD now closed.
Olivia’s mother, Stacy, expressed her gratitude for the care provided, stating, “We are excited to have the opportunity to support and represent the AHA for this year’s heart walk. This cause is very near and dear to our hearts and any advocacy to further advance medical care and research to improve heart health for any age is vital.”
She continued, “Congenital heart defects affect 1 in 100 babies annually—we are grateful that the medical field is as advanced as it is in order to treat little Miss Olivia and many other children like her. Please consider walking in this year’s heart walk to support this organization!”
Team UHS is encouraging walkers to join or form Heart Walk teams, including Team Olivia, to contribute donations that support cardiac research and aid patients like Olivia.
