While many residents were planning their New Year's resolutions and attending parties to ring in the new year, healthy and energetic three-year old Danika spent her New Year's day being admitted at St. Joseph's Health Care Centre, here in Elliot Lake.
The family had previously travelled south for Christmas and upon their return, Danika began to not feel like her happy-go-lucky self.
After suffering from the flu bug, her parents, Amanda and Brandon, took their little girl to get checked out at the hospital. The results from multiple tests and an x-ray were not what the parents were hoping for. Little Danika had pneumonia. A pediatrician in Sudbury informed doctors in Elliot Lake and the parents that he had an antibiotic for her. After being on the medication for a bit, she would develop another fever, elevating her white blood cell counts.
This proved to her doctors that the antibiotics were not working for her fragile body.
"They would take a test every day to see if there was any improvement," said close family friend Sarah Pearse. "I guess her while blood cell count from a couple types of medicine was raising and not lowering. That showed us all that it was the wrong antibiotic."
After being in the hospital for three days with no luck on any antibiotics, the doctors agreed to send her to Sudbury by ambulance, where they have machines more specific for children. There, little Danika was put on two more antibiotics to help the pneumonia.
"The nurse is seeing a little bit of breaking up of pneumonia," said Pearse. "She looks like she is doing better."
On Jan. 6, Danika was sent to undergo a cat scan. That's when the doctors noticed that there is fluid in her lungs and that the bacteria is causing cavities in her lungs as well.
"The pediatrician suggested the best option would be to fly to Toronto and go to Sick Kids," she said. "Danika has now been waiting for a bed as she needs an isolation room in Toronto."
Seeing as living expenses are quite high, the parents are looking to the community for help in order to help their daughter receive the health care that she needs and deserves.
"Brandon has been off work since the 22nd and they are definitely running out of money living in a hotel since New Year's Eve," she expressed. "I know it's stressful money-wise and they definitely don't need to be worrying about being broke all this time."
On Jan. 9, Pearse explained that the disc with Danika's tests was lost in the mail and new tests needed to be performed before Danika is able to go to Toronto. This has put a new stress on the parents while still waiting in Sudbury.
"It is still causing her fevers as of right now and developing cavities in her right lung," she explained. "Three days ago, they found fluid in her lung and this is a big reason why she has to go to Sick Kids. They have started blowing bubbles, making a little therapy as pneumonia is starting to break down. This process is really slow. Thank God it's breaking down a bit now. Poor thing."
If you would like to help the family, one can do so by visiting the gofundme page set up by the parents here.
As of Jan. 10, Amanda stated through the fundraising website that the abscess in Danika's right lung has halted.