Cape Town - Little Olerato Legong was just one year and seven months old when she was involved in a serious car accident.
The collision left her with several skull fractures and a severe traumatic brain injury, with bruising and bleeding in parts of her brain.
“Our lives changed just like that, from one day to the next. It shook my whole world,” said Thabang Legong, Olerato’s mother.
Despite the ordeal, Olerato showed resilience.
With the support of her mother and the specialised multi-disciplinary team in the paediatric unit at Netcare Rehabilitation Hospital, she made significant progress.
When she arrived at the hospital she was conscious and attempting to sit but her entire left side was very weak and she presented with visual difficulties, according to Professor Andre Mochan, a neurologist practising at the paediatric unit of Netcare Rehabilitation Hospital in Johannesburg.
“At that point she was poorly responsive and unable to interact,” said Mochan.
While surgical intervention successfully healed Olerato’s skull fractures, she had to spend a month in the hospital’s intensive care unit [ICU] before being transferred to Netcare Rehabilitation Hospital for rehabilitation therapy to help address the effects of the brain trauma.
The journey of a child in rehabilitation requires a very specialised approach, said Dr Anri Carstens, a general practitioner with a particular interest in children with special needs.
“Many people think of children as being small adults, but they really do need very particular care. So much so that there is a special kind of dedicated paediatric team of clinicians required for a children's unit in a rehabilitation centre. Their physiology is different to that of adults, they have varying communication capabilities, their nursing requirements are very specific and their family involvement needs to be far greater than in the case of an adult.”
“It is also important for children and their families to have assistance with transitioning from rehabilitation back to daily life. For many this includes finding a suitable outpatient facility for follow-up sessions in their area, possibly special needs schooling and continued care at home. This alone can be an overwhelming experience after an already difficult time, and we find that families gain great value from having a professional team such as the one at our hospital to help them join the dots and support them through this adjustment process,” she said.
Olerato was discharged about two months after her arrival at the unit, with marked progress, much to the joy of her family.
Now, two years later she is a healthy three-year-old, happily attending crèche, learning new things every day and making friends.
“She is still recovering, but the progress is huge – far quicker than I thought it would be. It’s better and better all the time,” said Legong.
Cape Times