At the Department of Pediatric and Respiratory Medicine, Hue Central Hospital, for more than 2 months now, Ms. Tran Thi Bich Thuy (born in 2004) has almost never left the hospital bed, where her son, Pham Tran Chi Kien (2 years old), is being treated.
The young mother from Dak Lak once followed her husband to Hue to start a business. However, successive upheavals occurred when her marriage broke down, she became a single mother when her child was too young. Without a house, without a place to rely on, Ms. Thuy and her child are currently being taken in by others to stay.
Before her son fell ill, Ms. Thuy did all kinds of jobs to make a living, doing whatever she was hired to do, earning about 3 million VND/month. That meager amount of money was just enough to cover the daily life of the two mothers and children. Since baby Kien had to be hospitalized for long-term treatment, she was forced to quit her job to be on duty to take care of her child.
“Now I can't go to work anymore, I just stay around my children all day. Money borrowed everywhere is no longer lent by anyone...”, Ms. Thuy choked up sharing.
According to the young mother's sharing, on March 6, 2026, baby Kien suddenly had a high fever continuously from 40-41 degrees Celsius, accompanied by a lot of cough, vomiting, runny nose and increasingly depleted body. At times, the child was paralyzed, sometimes awake, sometimes tired, with a pale face, causing Ms. Thuy to panic and take her child to Hue Central Hospital for emergency treatment.
After many examinations and tests, doctors diagnosed baby Kien with blood infection, severe pneumonia, severe enteritis and many complex signs of infection.
There were also times when baby Kien's condition seemed to improve when the fever subsided, but the hope just flashed for not long when he continued to have a high fever again... In the following days, baby Kien continuously had to undergo more in-depth tests. However, to date, the specific cause of the virus infection has not been clearly identified.
The doctor said that I have to do more in-depth tests, costing nearly 2 million VND. Now I am planning to do another test worth about 12 million VND. I don't know where to find it," Ms. Thuy said sadly.
More than two months of treatment, baby Kien's health has not shown clear signs of improvement. Each prolonged fever makes the baby's body increasingly pale and thin. The 2-year-old boy can hardly eat much, only eats a few spoons and vomits, mainly drinking milk sparingly.
Looking at her young son lying curled up on the hospital bed, his eyes tired but still trying to find his mother every time he wakes up, the young mother quietly turned away and wiped away tears many times.
My child is still too young, I just hope my child recovers. I don't dare to think about myself anymore, I just hope to have money to continue treating my child," Ms. Thuy shared.
Without support from both families when her parents divorced when she was still in her mother's womb, each person currently has their own life, these days, Ms. Thuy is almost alone on the journey to save her child.
Sharing with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Ms. Tran Thi Bich Thuy choked up: "Sometimes I just know how to hug my child and cry. My child is in pain and I don't know what to do but be by my child's side. I hope my child is healthy like other children, can eat normally, can run and play.
All help for life situation LD26127 please send to Tam Long Vang Charity Social Fund - 51 Hang Bo, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. Account number (STK) 113000000758 at Vietinbank Hoan Kiem Branch, Hanoi; Account number: 0021000303088 - at Vietcombank Hanoi Branch; Account number: 12410001122556 - at BIDV Hoan Kiem Branch.
