This is the real-life story of our latest grandchild who was afflicted by an ailment during COVID lockdown, narrated by me and my daughter

Newborn: My second daughter staying in Gurgaon, near Delhi, was pregnant with her second child. We, my better half and I, had decided to be with her during the delivery, expected in May 2020, and bring her and children home after a fortnight. Our plans tuned topsy turvy with the pandemic and nationwide lockdown. By the grace of God Almighty, my daughter delivered a girl child on 13 May in a hospital in Gurgaon. Two weeks thereafter they obtained an e pass and flew down to Cochin. We two collected our daughter and the two children at Cochin airport.

As per the instructions of the health workers, better known as ASHA workers, we along with the daughter and children were in home quarantine for two weeks.  During the first week, the newborn had a fever and on contacting the ASHA workers for permission to visit a doctor, they connected us to a doctor by phone, and the prescribed medicine was administered to the baby. The fever subsided, but the child was found to be ill at ease, we attributed the reason to her new surroundings. Immediately after the quarantine, we took the child to a pediatrician and his diagnosis was meningitis, followed by ‘hydrocephalus’ [too much fluid surrounding the brain, as a result, the head grows bigger than normal] and he suggested immediate surgery to drain out  the excess fluid from the skull.

PICU and the surgeries

 The one-month-old child was then taken to Caritas hospital, near Kottayam, where neurosurgeon, the classmate of one of my nephews, was. The child and the mother were admitted in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and put on IV and antibiotics. After a series of tests and scanning, on 11 July, the baby was operated on to insert a shunt [one end of a tube is placed inside the skull and the other end into the stomach, the tube passing below the skin] on her right side. The baby showed some improvements, but the recovery progress was not as expected. The clinical tests showed that the shunt was blocked. Our doctor contacted other doctors in his network and referred similar cases worldwide. He came across a description of a similar case in 2006 in Japan. The doctor told us that he proposed to do surgery again to replace the present one, insert a second shunt on the right side for faster drainage, and implant Ommaya chamber* to enable the doctor to take samples of the fluid, if required in the future, without puncturing the skull [* plastic device implanted under the scalp – named after the doctor who first inserted it]. The baby went through these procedures on 31July. Mother and child returned home after almost two months. The covid protocol prevented the dear and near ones from visiting us, but was a great support, both mental and emotional, through their phone calls and ardent prayers.

Reviews and developments

The doctor warned us that the child may have some defects physical, emotional, or developmental, as the brain fluid was infected at an early stage for over a month. We went through the monthly reviews with the doctor and the developmental clinic regularly. Every time, to the doctor’s surprise the baby looked much better than her clinical test results. The lady at the developmental clinic prescribed specific physical therapy, which my daughter painstakingly went through with the child daily. We at home kept them in isolation for over a month, but they later joined others in the house, which included my son and wife working from home and their two children. Every day was a revelation as we observed the development of the newborn and the other children as well. Through the days and months, slowly but steadily the tiny tot picked up and crossed her developmental stages. We did refer her case to other four doctors in renowned hospitals in Kerala, who assured us that the child was in safe hands. The child’s progress has gone even beyond the expectation of the doctor and he keeps her as a case study. She is now one year seven months grown and is hale and hearty. There are years ahead of her and we will be treading them with caution as she progresses through the various milestones in her life. But we will continue to look at her past in amazement.

The cause and the outcome

Although there was an initial doubt, it is now confirmed that it was not congenital.  Then the question arises as to the cause of the infection leading to meningitis. Was it the hospital in Gurgaon, the Delhi-Cochin air travel, Cochin- Changanacherry car drive, and stay at our home., delay in visiting the doctor due to quarantine . ? The answer, if at all we can arrive at, is of no relevance now.

The baby is the epitome of the human spirit that fights all the odds. She survived the infection, made up for the days and months lost in treatment, and is on par with children of her age.

We staunchly believe that it was the divine power that saw us through this travail that lasted one and half years. My daughter who has gone through this travail with composure, equanimity, and great trust in God has the following to share:

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My daughter writes

This Too Shall Pass

When we got admitted, we never knew the stay in PICU would be this long – a week’s stay turned into 21 days and finally into 2 months. Unlike other ICU’s bystanders, PICU needed them full time inside, beside the patient, and had to share the bed. From day one I decided to face the stay one day at a time, there was no point in being too anxious about the next day. A few days I had to stay without being washed or getting a fresh set of clothes because she needed me around. What inflicted me the most was a few incidents I witnessed inside the PICU, separated by curtains in between the beds.

• A kid was admitted with severe stomach ache – this was their second hospital. I could just hear all the hustle and bustle  – call out for ventilator support, number  of Doctors whose voices I didn’t recognize discussing the case. My Pediatric Doc steps in and request me to move into PICU 2, she just hinted that things were not looking good, the newly admitted kid had no heartbeat. After Duty change of Nurses we are informed the Kid’s was a special medical case which was undetected and symptom of stomach ache led to missed treatment, while the real cause was cardiac arrest.

I am ever so grateful to all the Doctors and Nurses who were involved in my Kid’s diagnosis, treatment, and after-care. Her case truly shows how timely treatment can do wonders for a patient. It makes us pray for all Doctors to be filled with his presence to make the right decision.

• One late night there was a case of Epilepsy/Seizure, the child patient was given medicine and its condition became stable. Since she wasn’t bought in with fever, Doctor wanted further investigation. The Mom of the kid throughout was lost in thought. She just wanted to meet her husband and was not listening to the Doctors advice. After a day’s stay in PICU, and no further progress with test, the Mom was insisting to be discharged. On further enquiry she opened up. Her husband was a lorry driver with COVID and had pledged her gold ornaments to meet the day to day expenses.  She could not afford the treatment of the child. The Doctor told not to worry about financial burden from hospital, and assured that she would pitch in when needed. But by afternoon they got discharged against the Doctor’s advice.

I am ever grateful to our support system, we never had to worry about her treatment – financial or functional-wise. Everyone in the family gave their 100% to avail the best treatment our child could get. Not to mention the prayers we were surrounded with. That gave us strength to tide over the travail.

• One early morning a teen was brought in for treatment. Heated argument at home led her into drinking Lysol to commit suicide. As per her Mom she is a bright student and she doesn’t know what actually let to this attempt. Councilors in the hospital attempted to talk with the teen, but in vain. All night I could hear the Mom wail, from behind the curtain. I can just imagine the guilt and pain she was going through.

I pray every day for them, ‘God all the scolding and punishments we give them, we do it for their good. 10-20 years down the line we are not sure how it’s going to impact them. Let every action I do make them a better person – a happy person

• Epilepsy cases were the maximum I had seen during my Stay. Majority due to high fever. There was this case of a baby bought in Epilepsy, things felt normal and he was being discharged. However the head nurse found his stare a little weird and they admitted him back in PICU for further investigation. At 9 month, he didn’t have social smile, hadn’t rolled over, wasn’t able to sit up without support, wasn’t into solids (he kept sucking). All the red flags which needed further development analysis. I am not sure what happened to that kid, we were into our own set of worries. To date I think of the kid and wish he is doing all fine.

I am ever grateful for the Development support my child got, from not meeting the milestone on time to having minimal delays to catching up. We have come a long way. Her Development Therapist and pediatricians, who were a Whatsapp message away had given me all the support and direction I needed.

• PICU is better equipped to check Vitals, so one day a mother and kid comes into PICU to check Vitals. Duty nurse has a casual conversion.

Nurse: How old is the child?

Mom: 1.5 years old.

Nurse: Does he walk?

Mom: Not yet.

Me(thinking): Not yet?

Nurse: His pressure seems ok. Why are you doing his testing?

Mom: He was on medication for high BP, so wanted it tested before we revise the Medicine.

Me(thinking) : 1.5 Year on BP tablet?

Nurse: How long has he been under BP tablet?

Mom: He was under the medication after his open-heart surgery.

Nurse: Oho! So you are that kid that had the first open-heart surgery in the hospital. He looks all fine now

Me(Thinking) : Why was I being judgmental

To all the parents out there, people around ‘will’ be judgmental of your kids – their height, color, looks, ability. As parents only we know what we have been through and how far we have come. For a kid with stage fright, constantly encouraging him to spend 5 secs on stage is a huge WIN for you. But for ‘others’ it was a lousy performance. Only I know what struggle I have been through to get to the level we have. As a parent, I don’t need any validation from anyone. My happiness comes from seeing my Kid growing into a happy, contented person. We can never make everyone happy; we should just concentrate on kids’ happiness. Only then can we live in Peace.