Doctors say the fact 10-year-old Colton Hasebe can spend the afternoon jumping around with his sisters is nothing short of miraculous.
“I think it is truly is one of the rare miracles,” said Dr. Garth Meckler, head of BC Children Hospital’s pediatric emergency division.
“It’s one of those things that I look back on and will never forget and am so grateful to have been a part of.”
Five months ago, Colton had one of his periodic asthma attacks.
“He was wheezing, and coughing, and we just did what we would normally do and give him his puffer,” said his mother Rachel.
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Only this time, it forced a trip to BC Children’s Hospital – and while he was in the emergency waiting room, he had a heart attack.
“I looked over to the side, and Colton had fallen down and I just started yelling, ‘I need help here right now,'” said his father Kevin.
Colton stopped breathing and lost his heartbeat for 15 minutes, while doctors and nurses fought to resuscitate him. After several rounds of compressions and medication, his pulse came back. But the brain damage had already set in.
“The brain is quite dependent on oxygen and sugar and glucose and if it’s deprived of either for more than three to five minutes, you can see effects similar to a stroke,” said Meckler.
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Colton lost his vision and was unable to eat or walk. But after moving to the Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children, a team of therapists helped Colton learn the basics again.
“It was frustrating because I wanted to go home, really bad,” said Colton.
After only a month, Colton regained his skills and independence, and is now back at home and at school.
“Things like this, that we train for, probably happens a couple of times in someone’s career. And we were just very lucky to have everyone in the right place at the right time,” said Meckler.
– With files from Tanya Beja
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