Specialist Professional Support

Rachel Avison

Support Group Facilitator 

Rachel joined Tiny Tickers in 2020 to facilitate our new virtual peer support groups. As a Clinical Psychologist, she recognises the huge value in people coming together to talk through their personal and shared experiences and forming close and supportive connections with others in similar situations.

Rachel has worked in the NHS since 2006 and has spent the past eight years providing psychological care to patients within a regional Congenital Cardiology Service. She strives to support children, parents and families in leading fulfilling lives alongside congenital heart disease (CHD). When Rachel is not working at the hospital or chasing after her toddler, she loves to be outside and enjoying long lunches with family and friends.

Abbie Mitchell

Support Group Facilitator 

Abbie has worked in the charity sector for over 10 years delivering mental health, resilience and peer support programmes and now also facilitates our virtual peer support groups.

At her 20 week scan, Abbie found out her baby, Jasper, had CHD. Knowing the benefits of peer support, where people with shared experiences can relate to one another and offer empathy, hope and comfort, Abbie joined our parent Facebook community. Thanks to her work experience in setting up and running peer support programmes, and her lived experience of being a heart parent and giving birth in the pandemic, Abbie is now proud to be running our virtual Zoom pregnancy group. This is something she wished she could have had access to during her pregnancy.

Gill McBurney

Cardiac Liaison Nurse Specialist Advisor

Gill has worked in paediatric cardiology since 1992 and moved into the cardiac nurse specialist role in 2001. She initially worked as part of the cardiology team that attended the fetal medicine unit at Liverpool Women’s for a few years and finally found her way back to Alder Hey in 2020 in a permanent role. She is passionate about ensuring parents-to-be are fully supported and prepared for the journey ahead and has been instrumental in the introduction of virtual tours of Alder Hey during COVID.

Outside of work she spends a lot of time at the cinema and the theatre, likes eating cake and enjoys watching tennis.

We also have a network of specialist trainers, who deliver our fetal cardiac training to sonographers across the UK.