One Embrace at a Time for the Unforgettable 4 Lives
I shared with you about a week ago that Dr. H from Iwaki (Fukushima prefecture, about 30 KM from the Nuclear Plant) shared the difficulty he is going through at his hospital while he was delivering care to the neonates in an environment with limited resources with the impending nuclear thread growing. His hospital since transported several infants to other facilities but he is sticking to one patient who is too unstable to transport. We received a mail through the neonatal list serve yesterday with a story of unforgettable 4 lives.
Unforgettable 4 lives.
Dr. H expresses that he is clearly distraught at the time of writing and that he wishes the others who are in the neonatal medicine/nursing would be able to identify with his thoughts.
He took care of a trisomy 13 infant sometime ago who stayed at this NICU nearly a year and was discharge home to continue the medical care at home. Trisomy 13 is a chromosomal condition that is often not consistent with life but this infant waas able to go home on ventilator and he was now 6 years old, however, still dependent on medical car.
The recent tsunami swept the family home where this child lived with his 3 yr old younger brother and his parents. They had been missing since the quake and tsunami. Since the event occurred in the mid afternoon, the father was at work and he had been looking for his family,,
Dr. H received a visit from the child's father this weekend, who knew how Dr. H dedicated his time and effort to the care of the child and reported that the body whom Dr. H cared for was found. Children's mother and the 3 yr old siblings are not found yet.
Dr. H thinks that the children's Mother's escape was likely delayed due to the child who was medically dependent and also due to the 3 yr old who needed help. It was heard by someone near that someone encouraged her to consider giving up on the medically dependent child and run with the 3 yr old to safely. She was last seen embracing the two children tightly together when she was swallowed up by the gush of tsunami and swept away.
Dr. H described how he and the father of these children, a husband to this loving wife shared their amazement on the brevity of the mother. And he goes on to express his deep reflection of the mother's love for both healthy and unhealthy children with equal commitment to love them to her death. We have no doubt that both children knew all their short lives that their mother and father loved them dearly. Dr. H reminisced on how mom and dad used to come and stay with the infant in NICU for a long visit almost every evening. Mother would be there in the day time and the father would join her and the child after work. The mother asked Dr. H when the baby was being discharged, if he thought that the child would ever smile? (knowing the chromosomal condition and the natural limitation) . Dr. H said he responded by saying, , "never know what a home atmosphere can do for him".
A month later, he received a photo of the child from the mother showing an incredibly joyful expression.
The father who survived expressed his thoughts to Dr. H as follows.
"When the child was born, I was unsure if I could gain the true appreciation for my child and be able to love him (the child also suffered cleft lip). The time in NICU was tough but I have nothing but gratitude for the time and effort you spent for my child and our family. Thank you for saving his life. We learned how a child with special condition could strengthen the bond of a family. We as parents experienced the joy that raising 'normal" child could not have allowed us to experience. For that, I am grateful for my son for all that he taught us while he was with us. I am in awe of my wife's courage and love for our kids.
Dr. H expressed how complex but deep and expansive a mother's love is for the children.. He admitted that even he could not help but thinking what if she left the medically dependent child and fled with the 3 yr old???? Could she have survived?
Dr. H promised the father that he would join him in sharing with others how beautiful his family was because of the bond of love they shared, In one sweep, the family lost the Mom, the 3 yr old and the child on the ventilator. Difficulty road is ahead for the father to rebuild and live on.
Dr. H pleaded at the end of his mail to remind us that when 20,000 are deceased and 300,000 are displaced from their homes, the stories like this one is not quite so rare. The prayer is needed in a disparate way for the broken heart and spirit.
I titled this as One Embrace at a TIme: Tribute to the Unforgettable 4 lives. The mother was expecting their third child:therefore, she was embracing three children. I just can not get my mind wrapped around this tragedy. But it does leave my heart warm slightly knowing that 4 were together.
Unforgettable 4 lives.
Dr. H expresses that he is clearly distraught at the time of writing and that he wishes the others who are in the neonatal medicine/nursing would be able to identify with his thoughts.
He took care of a trisomy 13 infant sometime ago who stayed at this NICU nearly a year and was discharge home to continue the medical care at home. Trisomy 13 is a chromosomal condition that is often not consistent with life but this infant waas able to go home on ventilator and he was now 6 years old, however, still dependent on medical car.
The recent tsunami swept the family home where this child lived with his 3 yr old younger brother and his parents. They had been missing since the quake and tsunami. Since the event occurred in the mid afternoon, the father was at work and he had been looking for his family,,
Dr. H received a visit from the child's father this weekend, who knew how Dr. H dedicated his time and effort to the care of the child and reported that the body whom Dr. H cared for was found. Children's mother and the 3 yr old siblings are not found yet.
Dr. H thinks that the children's Mother's escape was likely delayed due to the child who was medically dependent and also due to the 3 yr old who needed help. It was heard by someone near that someone encouraged her to consider giving up on the medically dependent child and run with the 3 yr old to safely. She was last seen embracing the two children tightly together when she was swallowed up by the gush of tsunami and swept away.
Dr. H described how he and the father of these children, a husband to this loving wife shared their amazement on the brevity of the mother. And he goes on to express his deep reflection of the mother's love for both healthy and unhealthy children with equal commitment to love them to her death. We have no doubt that both children knew all their short lives that their mother and father loved them dearly. Dr. H reminisced on how mom and dad used to come and stay with the infant in NICU for a long visit almost every evening. Mother would be there in the day time and the father would join her and the child after work. The mother asked Dr. H when the baby was being discharged, if he thought that the child would ever smile? (knowing the chromosomal condition and the natural limitation) . Dr. H said he responded by saying, , "never know what a home atmosphere can do for him".
A month later, he received a photo of the child from the mother showing an incredibly joyful expression.
The father who survived expressed his thoughts to Dr. H as follows.
"When the child was born, I was unsure if I could gain the true appreciation for my child and be able to love him (the child also suffered cleft lip). The time in NICU was tough but I have nothing but gratitude for the time and effort you spent for my child and our family. Thank you for saving his life. We learned how a child with special condition could strengthen the bond of a family. We as parents experienced the joy that raising 'normal" child could not have allowed us to experience. For that, I am grateful for my son for all that he taught us while he was with us. I am in awe of my wife's courage and love for our kids.
Dr. H expressed how complex but deep and expansive a mother's love is for the children.. He admitted that even he could not help but thinking what if she left the medically dependent child and fled with the 3 yr old???? Could she have survived?
Dr. H promised the father that he would join him in sharing with others how beautiful his family was because of the bond of love they shared, In one sweep, the family lost the Mom, the 3 yr old and the child on the ventilator. Difficulty road is ahead for the father to rebuild and live on.
Dr. H pleaded at the end of his mail to remind us that when 20,000 are deceased and 300,000 are displaced from their homes, the stories like this one is not quite so rare. The prayer is needed in a disparate way for the broken heart and spirit.
I titled this as One Embrace at a TIme: Tribute to the Unforgettable 4 lives. The mother was expecting their third child:therefore, she was embracing three children. I just can not get my mind wrapped around this tragedy. But it does leave my heart warm slightly knowing that 4 were together.
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