October 14, 2022
Four-year-old Charli Goodrich was a happy and healthy little girl before she unexpectedly became sick one morning in February last year.
Her parents rushed her to Kingaroy Hospital, where doctors diagnosed she had a collapsed lung, and arranged a transfer to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
But when Charli’s condition started to deteriorate, doctors determined she had also acquired Respiratory Syncytial Virus.
So with the help of Brisbane surgeons via video link, SCU Hospital’s medical staff inserted a tube into Charli’s lungs to help her breathe.
Charli’s mother Letisha Goodrich said at this point the little girl was also diagnosed with double pneumonia and a golden staph infection.
And then Charli developed sepsis and her tiny body went into shock.
Charli was intubated, stabilised and airlifted to the Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane where doctors feared she had only 30 minutes to live.
The little girl was rushed into four hours of surgery and afterwards, was placed on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation to keep her heart and lungs functioning and let her body heal.
In all, Charli was in the Intensive Care Unit at the Queensland Children’s Hospital for the next seven weeks.
But it was an ordeal her family says they are eternally grateful for, because it saved their daughter’s life.
The hospital was also where Charli and her family got to know the Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Letisha said the Foundation helped Charli and the family through some of their toughest days.
“The Children’s Hospital Foundation was there for us when we needed it most. I am a person that likes to repay favours and I thought even if I could just help a little bit, it would count,” she said.
The family sold one of their heifers to purchase a large camp fire oven and started a raffle to raise funds.
They ended up raising $15,100 to help fund lifesaving research and medical equipment.
Thankfully, 18 months after her narrow escape from death, Charli has now made a full recovery.
- Donations to the Children’s Hospital Foundation can be made online
