Despite a grim prognosis, the child who had been extubated by order of the Superior Court of Quebec will be released from the hospital on Monday. His mother, who thanks the medical team at the CHU Sainte-Justine, celebrates the achievement of a miracle.
“When we extubated him, we thought he wasn’t going to survive and since then, by the grace of God, he’s been breathing on his own,” rejoices Yolande*, who almost lost her boy in a drowning, the last summer.
Monday morning, parents and family friends will gather in front of the CHU Sainte-Justine to celebrate the release of the child, hospitalized for nine months.
Last June, the 5-year-old boy was found at the bottom of the family pool, where he remained underwater for between 15 and 20 minutes. He was under the supervision of his grandmother, who could not swim.
Transferred to Sainte-Justine Hospital, the child was in a coma, intubated and force-fed for more than seven months. His brain was “severely” damaged. However, signs suggested that he could breathe independently. The medical team therefore offered to remove the endotracheal tube, which was causing him more harm than good in his situation and which was likely to cause “serious, even fatal” damage.
Very pious, however, the child’s parents opposed the extubation as proposed, hoping for God’s intervention. They wanted at all costs that their boy be reintubated in case of failure, which was too risky, judged the doctors.
The case went to the Superior Court of Quebec, which ruled in favor of extubation for “the best interest of the child”. The parents were dismissed in January after appealing the decision.
Finally, the boy was extubated on February 16. As his condition improves, he will be discharged from hospital on Monday. “He is getting better and better every day. Everything is well settled at home, because he does not really need to stay in the hospital, supports Yolande. Tomorrow he comes home. »
The mother did not elaborate on the child’s progress, such as whether he can talk or walk again.
“We celebrate life. The mere fact that he is alive, we are already satisfied. We know that it is the hand of God and the good care he received at the hospital, she replies. I am in ecstasy and all I say is thank you lord, thank you to the entire medical team. »
*Name changed to protect identity of the child
With Emilie BilodeauThe Press