Holy Week Tragedy

"HR3 RWT -Doctor Rick", came the voice with urgency on the other line. They primarily use HAM radio here to communicate.
"Quinientos", I say in return, indicating that the triage nurse on the other line switch to channel 500 so we can talk.
"Tenemos un nino que se ha agohado," she states with panic in her voice (we have a child who has drown).
"Yo vengo," I say in return (I am coming).
I put down the radio and sprint to the hospital from the dorms (no more than a quarter of a mile).
Upon arrival Dr Shaw Yount, who had been doing administrative work in the hospital, was performing chest compression and Norma King, RN was providing mask ventilation. I start into assist the team with warming and resucitation...

This week is "Semana Santa" (Holy Week) in this largely nominal Catholic country. This is their big holiday week. If Hondurans have the finances or if they are lucky enough to live nearby they travel to the coast to enjoy the holiday...

Isaac (4 years of age) had been enjoying the day playing and swimming along one of the local rivers. Like most other children his age, he was likely hopping from rock to rock, searching for bugs and reptiles to play with or torture. Enjoying a week with cousins. Somehow like evry curious child he had seemed to wander off by himself...

Isaacs mom was nearby catching up with her family, cleaning up after lunch. Surely Isaac was being watched by one of the older children. Suddenly her sister-in-law screams that something is wrong, in her heart she knows it's Isaac, that boy is always getting into mischief. As she crests the riverbank she sees the lifeless body of Isaac being pulled from the water. Quickly they carry him to the road and flag down a vehicle to transport them to loma de luz hospital...

We work on Isaac for over an hour, multiple rounds of epinepherine, atropine, defibrillation... We attempt to rewarm his body... He is intubated and a central line is placed... We pray... We think we see some cardiac activity on the monitor... We try some more... We all know that the chance of Isaac surviving would require a miracle... there are no miracles to be had today...Isaacs mother is informed of the news...she is griefstricken...no one should have to bury their child...especially not during Semana Santa...

There are few patients that I remember from my short medical career. Physicians remember interesting cases, and the saying is that you don't want to be an interesting case. We also retain very few memories of success...we seem to preferentially remember our failures...this probably goes for most people in most areas of life. Hug your children, if they'll let you... extra hard tonight...