Family fights tooth and nail to keep their child alive
According to Danna le Roux, Noah's aunt, he was unable to breathe at birth and was put on a ventilator for a week.
A local pro-active security officer who has done everything in his power to keep the community safe is now trying his best to save the life of his very ill three-year-old son.
Jono Rudolph, who works for Londoloza Security Group as a tactical reaction officer, and his wife Candy have endured so much financial and emotional hardship in their attempt to pay the medical bills for their second sickly child, Noah, who is currently fighting for his life in ICU because of a breathing problem.
Noah has not been healthy since his birth in March 2015.
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According to Danna le Roux, Noah’s aunt, he was unable to breathe at birth, and was put on a ventilator for a week. He was fed via a feeding tube.
“At the age of two months, he was hospitalised for bronchial pneumonia and at three months he was admitted suffering from an adenovirus.”
“After two days in the hospital, in the middle of the night in June 2015, he went into respiratory failure and his trachea closed. He was resuscitated and rushed to theatre for intubation and put on the ventilator in the neonatal ICU at Olivedale Clinic,” she explained.
While the family was slowly coming to terms with Noah’s health condition, his health worsened, and he was diagnosed with emphysema, a condition causing air to escape from his lungs which “Blew him up like a balloon,” said Le Roux.
Le Roux further explained that they inserted bilateral drains into his lungs to help the air escape and stop the lungs collapsing. He was on the ventilator and drain for two and half weeks until he was discharged.
At the time he had had at least eight admissions for croup, lung, bronchial pneumonia and asthma-related issues.
Le Roux indicated that last month, his condition deteriorated further after Noah stopped breathing in the middle of the night. “He stopped breathing on 25 February and was rushed to Olivedale. They administered adrenaline and kept him under observation in the paediatric ward. The ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist suggested a scope, which was done on 27 February. After the scope, he struggled and his trachea continued to close. He was diagnosed with a rhinovirus,” she explained.
Noah has since been moved to Waterfall Hospital where he is currently receiving the care he needs as his airway continues to close on and off.
Although the family has a hospital plan, they still need to cover some additional costs at the hospital which has increased the pressure on their finances. Jono told Northsider that he has been paying off medical bills for the past five years, some for their firstborn child, Skylah Bell, who was diagnosed with a bacterial infection after her birth in 2013.
“We are now trying to raise R100 000. Noah is still in ICU, and it’s put us under severe strain, although we are really hopeful that we will get answers,” a desperate Jono said.
In a bid to try and relieve the family stress, a fund and Facebook page called Help4Noah was started. “The funds will be used to settle the outstanding medical debt and keep funds available for future medical treatment for the family,” said Le Roux.
“There has been a lot of support, with members of the public approaching us to raise funds for Noah by conducting Golf Days, and Melanie Hirse has offered to raise funds while competing in the Two Oceans Marathon,” she went on.
Candy expressed her deep gratitude to the individuals, organisations and companies that have lent a helping hand to the family. “It’s been absolutely amazing how the communities have got involved. Londoloza Protection Group, RRA, the communities of Randpark Ridge, Northwold, Welview, Sundowner and Honeydew, Pick n Pay Boskruin, and Carol from MedWyze have all assisted in getting our medical costs paid. And the incredible Chantelle from The Sloane Foundation is assisting us in settling a lot of our old debt,” she said.
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