For a man in America, going to meet his family turned into an incident that he would probably not be able to forget for the rest of his life. Preparations were on to return home after spending a few relaxing days with relatives, but then a small mistake changed everything. While walking in the garden, he accidentally stepped on a poisonous rattlesnake. The snake immediately retaliated and bit him twice. Within a short time, his condition deteriorated so much that doctors had to give him 54 vials of anti-venom to save his life. The treatment was successful and his life was saved, but the medical bill that came after this put the entire family in new trouble. The expenditure of the hospital reached approximately 13 lakh dollars i.e. approximately Rs 11 crore.
This incident happened with Chris Howarth, living in the state of Idaho, America. He had gone with his family to meet his parents and relatives in Oroville city of California. After spending quality time with his family for four days, he was preparing to return home with his wife and children. Meanwhile, he went out for a walk in the garden of his parents’ house. While walking, he felt that his foot had fallen on some plant or branch, but the next moment he realized that he had stepped on a poisonous rattlesnake. The snake attacked him without any delay and bit him twice.
This disease occurred during treatment
Within minutes of the snake bite, Chris’s health started deteriorating rapidly. His tongue started becoming numb, the lymph nodes of his body became swollen and he started feeling difficulty in breathing. The family immediately took him to the hospital, where doctors started treatment. Initially the doctors were hopeful that his condition would be resolved if he got timely treatment, but after a few days his condition became more serious. During treatment, doctors found that Chris had a very serious disease called Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation i.e. DIC. This is a condition in which blood clots start forming in different ways inside the body. Due to this, different parts of the body can be adversely affected and even the life of the patient can be in danger. The biggest challenge before the doctors was to somehow prevent his condition from worsening.
Seeing Chris’s critical condition, doctors started giving anti-venom continuously. He was given not one or two but a total of 54 vials of anti-venom. The treatment went on for a long time and the condition became such that the entire stock of anti-venom in the hospital where he was being treated was exhausted. After this the doctors decided that it was necessary to send him to another hospital for better treatment. After this, Chris was taken to Stanford Medical Center with the help of helicopter. There specialist doctors re-assessed his condition and he was given another type of anti-venom. The effect of the new treatment gradually became visible and his condition began to stabilize. After staying in ICU for about 12 days, the doctors finally discharged him from the hospital. After this he could return home with his wife Jenny and his three children.
However, even after being discharged from the hospital, his problems did not end completely. His wife Jenny says that Chris is much better than before, but has not fully recovered yet. According to him, at present he has been able to recover only about 80%. There is still pain and swelling in his leg. If they walk for a long time or do any physical work then the problem increases further. Apart from this, they feel tired quickly, due to which it is not easy to return to normal life.
The family is going through an economic crisis.
Jenny told that when the doctors told them that Chris had a serious disease like DIC, the whole family was horrified. He was afraid every moment that he might lose his family member forever. The tension and fear of those days is no less than a nightmare for the family even today. He says that this accident has made him understand the importance of life and now he realizes how precious every moment spent with his people is.
Along with health issues, economic crisis also faced the family. Chris has not been able to go to work since May 26 and did not receive any salary during this period. Earlier, due to a surgery in January, he had already used his paid leave and sick leave. In such a situation, he had no holidays left and no regular source of income.
The biggest shock came when the total cost of treatment came to light. The hospital bill reached approximately 13 lakh dollars i.e. approximately Rs 11 crore. On one hand there is pressure of such a huge medical amount and on the other hand there has been no salary coming home for many weeks. In such a situation, the family is very worried about the future. However, during this difficult time, many people came forward and provided financial help, for which Jenny thanked everyone wholeheartedly. He says that people’s cooperation has given him both hope and courage in this difficult period. Now the whole family is hoping that Chris will soon be completely healthy and will be able to return to normal life and work.
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