A plaster model of his daughter’s hand is the closest thing Eric Muhry has to holding a child’s hand again.
“This is the hand she made for us at the hospital when she died,” Eric says, pointing to a small sculpture that now hangs on the wall of his home in Hamilton, Ontario. say.
2 year old Neva Muley died suddenly of a Strep A bacterial infection earlier this month. Now her parents are trying to raise awareness about invasive infections and pick up the pieces.
Nevaeh was known as an adventurous and brave toddler who loved to dance.
“Her favorite thing was dancing,” says Eric. “A few days before she got sick, she was dancing. She has a video of her dancing in her front room.”
Earlier this month, Nevaeh developed a fever. Her other siblings had caught colds around the same time, so her parents weren’t surprised.
“All our kids were sick.
Her mother, Donna Johnson, was able to bring the temperature down within hours of the onset of symptoms.
“She changed her diaper and noticed a stain. The first sign of something was a stain. [while] change her diaper. And she’s like, “We have to go to the hospital.”
The girl was taken to hospital and went into cardiac arrest. She came back to life, but she didn’t survive the second time it happened.It all happened so suddenly.
“We were rubbing her head, holding hands, trying to talk to her, ‘Mom and Dad are here. It’s okay, honey,'” Donna said.
“When they emptied her lungs, it was in her right lung and they said it was strep pneumonia.”
Increase in STREP A cases
The rising number of cases of Streptococcus A, especially among children, has prompted alarms from several health authorities around the world.public health ontario noted a sharp rise in December.
Group A streptococci are not uncommon, but they become invasive when they enter parts of the body that are normally free of bacteria.
“If only I could see her one last time and tell her we were in the hospital. ‘You weren’t alone,'” Eric said.
“I think the hardest part was when they started unplugging her. When they stopped, they said, ‘It’s too late.'” ”
Now Nevaeh’s parents want to encourage other families to raise awareness about Strep A and not downplay the symptoms.
“Even if it’s just a fever, take it. Ask to be tested for Strep A. I know hospitals treat it like a cold or the flu,” Eric says.
Not only are families facing permanent holes, but they are also facing unexpected funeral-related expenses. Started fundraising I support some of them.
Financial support is highly appreciated, but they know that no amount of money will bring their daughter back.
“She has her own plate, but she always wanted to come over to me and eat what was on my plate.
Now, they say, every plate makes them feel a little fuller, leading to an unexplained feeling of emptiness.
