Mabel’s Radiothon Story

Remember the 2009 Pandemic when H1N1 caused thousands of deaths worldwide? We moved radiothon because it was too risky to have people at ACH who didn’t need to be here.

Thankfully, it’s not as lethal a threat as it used to be, so when 4-year-old Mabel caught H1N1, her parents hoped with IV fluids and symptom management she’d be able to fight it and quickly get better. But, after a few days in Medicine Hat’s hospital Mabel developed an invasive pneumonia and took a drastic turn for the worse. Nathan thought her breathing seemed off so he texted a video to Stacey who is a nurse and was at home with their son. She saw that Mabel needed added support and a Respiratory Therapist. An x-ray was ordered and high flow oxygen initiated. When the pediatrician saw the x-ray, Medicine Hat called ACH for help.

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When the transport team arrived, Mabel’s condition was unstable. When they sedated, paralyzed and attempted to intubate, her vital signs went from unstable to critical. She was so fragile they couldn’t get her on the ventilator. The RT had to hand bag her for the entire air ambulance flight to Calgary. At ACH, her parents were told to prepare for the worst. Mabel had become septic and was going into organ failure. She was successfully hooked up to a ventilator in the PICU along with nitric oxide and had almost a dozen IV pumps with advanced cardiac life support drugs, antibiotics, medications to manage her blood pressure, kidney and liver function all infusing to keep her alive. 

Although it was overwhelming, Stacey knew Mabel was getting the care she needed. Stacey has never seen medical teams function as well as the teams at ACH. The staff and care in PICU were incredible. Nathan and Stacey both know without the transport team and ACH, Mabel would not be alive today. She spent more than a month in hospital and due to the severity of her illness had to relearn how to sit, crawl and walk. Today, she’s doing great – spunky and smart with a fantastic sense of humour. 

Community donations funded the hospital’s first dedicated transport team…and Radiothon donations continue to ensure PCCT is equipped to save children like Mabel.