ALL HANDS ON DECK! Help Save Autumn Schall

The family of 4-year-old Autumn Schall recently retained our advocacy services at Remnant Nursing after multiple ethics violations by the staff at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto, CA left them feeling abandoned, alone, and frightened for the life of their child.

Summary:

-Autumn was diagnosed with an E. coli infection at her local ER. They advised her parents that they did not treat pediatric e-coli infections at this hospital and that a transfer of care to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital for “Fluid Management” would be necessary.

-Upon arrival at LPCH, Autumn was labeled by physicians as a “case study.”

-Per Autum’s mother Hope, they then began an aggressive swarm of medications including Lasix and Diarel to force her kidneys to excrete more urine in an attempt to “mass flush” the infection byproducts. This just overwhelmed her system. Her mother attempted to advocate, demanding pacing, but physicians and hospital staff continued to fight her and ignore her pleas. Only when Autumn began vomiting blood, did they finally discontinue ONE of the medications. From here it has been a constant barrage of multiple interventions that many of the medical professionals we have consulted agreed were aggressive, unnecessary, and likely contributing factors to her declining health.

-When a blood transfusion was deemed necessary, the hospital staff fought any attempt by the family to facilitate a directed donation, to the point of threatening a court order to transfuse without parental consent.

-Autumn was placed on dialysis that included the use of Albumin, a human blood product. Her parents were not informed, nor did they consent to its use. This exposure has understandably caused her family a considerable amount of stress.

-The family was ready to remove Autumn from the hospital, but they have since placed her on a ventilator, impeding their ability to do so. A 22-year veteran Pediatric Respiratory Therapist whom we have consulted on this case, states that there is no justification for her prolonged intubation and that based on her numbers, she meets the standard criteria for extubation. Despite the parent’s multiple requests to do so, they are refusing to extubate her. They are keeping her heavily sedated and blaming her mother’s insistence on the use of a gentler diuretic as the reason for indefinite intubation, which carries a myriad of risks.

-The family feels as if they are being held hostage in this situation, with each additional intervention causing greater harm than the last. With time being of the essence, they feel that bringing their story to the media, may be the only chance they have to save their precious daughter from being the latest victim in a rash of medical kidnappings that we have seen around the country.

I was just informed that Child Protective Services has arrived at the hospital. We know that this is a shameful tactic that is often used to gaslight parents and force compliance with hospital protocols.

Stay Tuned and Follow Nurse Freedom Network and @Kimberly_NFN on Twitter for updates from the family. Mom, Hope will join me later this evening to share her story.

We are coordinating all media requests on behalf of the family – Please email all inquiries to Kimberly@nursefreedomnetwork.org

CALL TO ACTION:

CALL – Flood the phone lines at LPCH and let them know, the world is watching – Demand an investigation, accountability, and ACTION!

SHOW UP – If you are local to the Palo Alto area, we are calling for a peaceful demonstration of support for the family. Details to follow.

SHARE – Share Autumn’s story widely as we continue to garner support for her family. If you have a podcast, radio show, or social media following – Please contact us to arrange an interview ASAP.

PRAY – Please pray for Autumn’s complete healing. Pray for comfort and strength for her parents Hope and Billy, who continue to be fierce advocates for their child. Pray for the wisdom and boldness of our advocacy team as we continue to guide them through this complex process.

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