Influenza paralyzes midwife

Chris caught the flu in 2015 from a new mum and her family, in the course of her work, despite having had the flu vaccination. She became seriously ill, and in the early morning on Tuesday 11.8.2015 she could no longer breathe and was admitted to ICU, she required ventilation, kidney dialysis and intensive support there for 8 weeks before she awoke, completely paralyzed. She has subsequently been in Burwood Hospital for three months and is currently in St John of God for rehab.

ACC does not cover this event, because it was caused by a virus.

We would like to make one point very clear, Chris had been vaccinated.

It has been an enormous challenge and change for this independent and professional midwife, who previously led a busy, active life, working full time, and connecting with families and delivering more than 2000 Canterbury babies over her 30+ year career.

Chris’s life has seriously changed and this illness has had an exhausting effect on our family. A little of Chris’s movement has returned but she remains physically disabled. She requires assistance for toileting, showering (she dares not even think of a bath), dressing and getting into and out of her electric wheelchair. A lot has been taken from her and it’s the simple things she misses the most... the things we find ourselves taking for granted.

With the van she’ll be able to get to social events and other things that she enjoys and relies on to work on her mental well being. The beach, the sea, gardens and the natural world are extremely important to her.

She would like to be a volunteer for Pregnancy Help, and we could see her as being a valuable mentor to people in all walks of life, and to women in particular. But - being able to make a contribution to the community is reliant on transport.

We have set up this page to raise money for a van and modifications to make it ”electric wheelchair compatible”.

It feels wrong to ask for help and as Kiwis we often just put our heads down and get on with it but enough is enough. Chris and Christian are down to a ‘one wage family’ and Christian works extremely hard to make ends meet and take care of Chris’s parents. Once the funding runs out at St John of God we are concerned that she will be confined within the four walls of her home.

It is time for us to ask for help, Chris still has a lot to offer her community and it would also be of huge benefit to her mental health to be out and about. Any amount towards our overall goal would be appreciated beyond words. We all know that it's not always about the destination, it's the journey and that's what we need help with.

Thank you, everybody, for your support.