Sunday, June 28, 2009

Second Buffalo student dies of swine flu

06/28/09 07:05 AM

A 9-year-old Buffalo girl died of swine flu Saturday — the second Buffalo School District student to die of the disease in a week.

Maya Harden, who had been in critical condition in Women & Children’s Hospital for almost two weeks, died Saturday, her mother said.

“They tried everything to get her lungs circulating,” Maya’s mother, Akea Hollingsworth, said later in the day.

The girl’s death comes one week after 15-year-old Matthew Davis, an eighth-grader at Buffalo’s Harvey Austin School 97 on Sycamore Street, died from swine flu complications.

Maya, a fourth-grader at the Charles R. Drew Science Magnet School 59, first went to the emergency room June 12, because of flulike symptoms, her mother said.

Doctors thought it was pneumonia, and she was sent home to recuperate.

At first, Maya seemed to be getting better, but then took a turn for the worse, her mother said. Hollingsworth took her back to the hospital June 14.

Maya was again sent home early the next morning, but became lethargic, Hollingsworth said. On June 16, Hollingsworth took her daughter to the hospital for the third time in less than a week.

Over the past 11 days, Maya had been in critical but stable

condition. She died Saturday morning.

In Matthew’s case, by the time Matthew entered the hospital, he was seriously ill with the flu, as well as co-infected with a type of bacteria known as methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA.

MRSA has been a problem in hospitals and nursing homes for decades, but has also spread to otherwise healthy people in the community, living normally on the skin and in the nose and throat. Research suggests that the overuse of antibiotics has contributed to the problem.

This bacteria can cause infections of the skin, nose, throat and ear. But in a small number of cases, especially in patients with weakened immune systems, it can lead to life-threatening pneumonia and blood infections.

It was unclear Saturday whether Maya suffered similar complications.

Hollingsworth talked about her daughter.

“She was a beautiful little girl,” the mother said. “She was boisterous, full of personality. She was healthy with no severe health issues. She had a sense of humor, very caring. She would give the shirt off her back to someone that needed it.”

Maya was a huge Beyonce fan. Just before Hollingsworth spoke with The Buffalo News by phone Saturday, she listened to Beyonce’s song “Halo,” which will be played at Maya’s wake.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Hollingsworth said. “God doesn’t put more on you than you can bear.”

James A. Williams, district superintendent, issued a statement.

“It is with a heavy heart and deep sadness that . . . we mourn the loss of another student. Please keep the family in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time while they struggle with this terrible loss.”

Williams also pointed to the seriousness of the disease.

“. . . We ask parents again to remain vigilant in stopping the spread of H1N1. Please have your child wash and sanitize their hands as often as possible. The best way to remain disease free is to maintain proper hygiene and wash your hands on a regular basis.”

Philip Rumore, president of the Buffalo Teachers Federation, also expressed condolences.

He said the teachers union has made some recommendations to the district, including making schools a site for flu shots and having hand sanitizers on the school buses, as well as the classrooms.

The district also needs to make a greater effort to let parents know that if their child has a high fever they should go to the doctor and not to school, Rumore said.

“We have to all work together to ensure that no other parent or child has to go through this,” Rumore said.

And as Hollingsworth grieved for her daughter Saturday, she also thought about Matthew Davis.

“Her and Matthew’s death hopefully are not in vain,” she said. “They are now angels looking down from heaven.”

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