Suffering from epilepsy and brain atrophy since childhood, Le Khanh Han (3 years old, residing in Xay Da A hamlet, Ho Dac Kien commune, Can Tho city) cannot sit, stand or see like her peers. For the past 3 years, all of her activities have completely depended on family members.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Quynh Hoa - baby Han's grandmother - said that when she was first born, the baby fell into a state of clinical death, had to be on a ventilator and incubated for more than half a month. After that, the family took the baby to Can Tho City Children's Hospital for examination and was diagnosed with brain atrophy and signs of epilepsy. Recently, doctors said that the baby's eyes were almost unable to see.
The doctor said to take the baby to a higher level for further treatment, but the family does not have the capacity yet, so they cannot let the child go," Ms. Hoa said.
According to Ms. Hoa, baby Han's early years were a series of exhausted days for the whole family. In the early days, she was cared for by her grandmother. About 1 year ago, her grandmother was the one who directly raised her.
Before my mother gave birth to a baby, she could still help keep it. Later, after giving birth to another child, I had to take care of the newborn baby, so I had to hand it over to her," Ms. Hoa shared.
Currently, baby Han is only lying in one place, unable to sit or stand on her own. She often has convulsions, sleeps very little, and sometimes stays up all night until morning. Eating is also difficult, food must be ground finely, fed with small spoons, but many times after eating, she vomits.
Each day, the cost of milk, food, diapers and medicine ranges from 100,000 - 150,000 VND. The cost of treatment alone is about 600,000 VND/take, an average of nearly 1 million VND per month.
Mrs. Hoa's husband is old but still works as a construction worker far away, only returning home once every few months. The job is hard, the income is unstable, but he still tries to save money to send home so that she has expenses to take care of her grandchildren.
Previously, Ms. Hoa used to work as a kitchen assistant in Ho Chi Minh City. Since the baby's parents sent their grandchild home, she was forced to quit her job to take full-time care. Her son and daughter-in-law work as hired laborers in Ho Chi Minh City, earning about 4-5 million VND/month but often unemployed due to lack of work at the company. The baby's mother just gave birth to a young child 2 months ago, so life became even more difficult.
Currently, Ms. Hoa and baby Han have to stay at her older sister's house, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Mai, because the old house is cramped and not enough space for living. To have more income, Ms. Mai opened a small refreshment stall in front of her house. However, because it is located next to the national highway, traffic is dense, and few people stop, business has almost no significant income.
During the day, Mrs. Hoa spreads a mat on the floor for baby Han to lie down. In the evening, she carries her grandchild upstairs to sleep. The stairs are narrow and steep, and it is very difficult to get up and down each time.
Ms. Hoa's daughter - baby Han's aunt - also comes to help take care of her grandchild when she is free. However, her situation is not much better when her husband has a traffic accident and loses his ability to work. The economic burden therefore weighs on the shoulders of the whole family, making it even more difficult to manage money for baby Han's medicine.
According to Ms. Le Thi Kim Xuyen - Women's Union of Xay Da A hamlet (Ho Dac Kien commune, Can Tho city), the family is in difficult circumstances, formerly a poor household. Due to paperwork, the application for social protection benefits for the baby was delayed. Currently, baby Han is receiving an allowance of about 1.25 million VND/month and has only received it for the past 2 months. However, this amount is only enough to cover a part of the costs of medicine and living expenses.
The family really hopes to have the conditions to take the baby for examination and treatment at a higher level, but currently there is not enough capacity," Ms. Xuyen said.
All help for life situation LD26044, 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.
Or contact Ms. Hoa directly (baby Le Khanh Han's grandmother), phone number: 0866. 836952. Or Ms. Huong (baby Le Khanh Han's aunt), phone number: 0369. 106113.
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