The Survive to Thrive’s monitor saved the seven-month-old boy

Nhat Long is a seven-month-old boy of the Dao people born at Nhieu Sang village, Huoi Luong commune, Lai Chau province. In the first months of life, Nhat Long was unexpectedly admitted to Phong Tho Commune Medical Center and diagnosed with severe sickness. But few people know that his condition partly resulted from using traditional medicines with unknown components.

On a cold day last December, when Nhat Long was nearly 5 months old, the boy started to have some abnormal signs such as coughing, wheezing, and a fever of nearly 38 degrees. Having a feeling that the child was getting sick, his young parents fed him with unknown herb medicine 3 times a day. This caused the boy’s situation to become worse from pneumonia to traditional medicine poisoning in severe situations. Dao people’s life is often too difficult financially as they survive on farming jobs all year round, with limited knowledge and awareness, they usually self-medicate with traditional medicines that they believe could save their child’s life.

Doctors in Phong Tho Commune Medical Center immediately used the monitor machine sponsored by the Survive to Thrive program of VinaCapital Foundation (VCF) in June 2022, to monitor Nhat Long’s vital indicators and treat him with antibiotics and expectorant. Without the presence of a monitor, the doctors would be unable to know his heart rate status or oxygen concentration, or if his body temperature could not be well-controlled, the baby could easily get a high fever, causing seizures.

Occasionally, sick cases such as Nhat Long have to be transferred to the general hospital of Lai Chau province, which is 36 kilometers farther and potentially suffers from cold weather, causing many risks to all family members’ health. After the boy used the monitor, doctors were able to follow his health status and keep it stable, and Long was quickly discharged in good health.

Each medical device sponsored through the Survive To Thrive program by VCF to Medical Centers or hospitals in rural areas could help save many newborn babies like Nhat Long. Please accompany us to support the program to donate more equipment so that we can help many little patients in Vietnam grow up healthily.