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Posted By: Marty Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/09/15 10:50 AM

Gasoline for head lice causes severe burns for girl, 9

Katerin Michel Perez, 9, of the DFC area of San Pedro Town, whose head was treated with gasoline to get rid of lice, suffered major burns to her body when her body was ignited by the stove in her family's kitchen. She is presently fighting for her life at the Shriners Children's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Doctors said that Perez suffered third-degree burns to 53% of her body, and that the injuries to her arms, hands and face are especially severe, and she is listed in a critical condition.

According to the San Pedro Sun, at about 7:30 Good Friday night, April 3, the girl's scalp was treated with gasoline to get rid of parasites. However, when she passed near a lit stove in the kitchen, the fumes from the gasoline in the girl's head ignited, and she was quickly engulfed in flames.

Her mother and father, who were at home, rushed to help their daughter, and the mother herself suffered burns to her body and hands. Neighbors went to help them, and they were all taken to the San Pedro Polyclinic in the vehicle of a neighbor, then they were rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH), and the little girl was flown out via an air ambulance to the burn victims unit at the Shriners Children's Hospital.

Her mother, Carolina Dominguez Meza, sustained second degree burns to the hands and face and has been admitted to the KHMH in a stable condition.

A neighbor who went to help them at the time reported that she saw the girl's dad holding her in his arms and bringing her out of the house, and when she saw the child, she observed that her face was completely white. All the skin had already burned off, and her hair had been totally burned, and she was crying in pain. Also, the skin was peeling off her back. The father was screaming for help.

The neighbor and her husband then quickly got their truck and rushed the family to the San Pedro Polyclinic, where they were given urgent treatment.

Yvette Burke of the Burn Victims Unit Belize said that coordination was carried out with local and international agencies, and they were able to fly out Perez to the Shriners Children's Hospital and her father was able to go along with her.

She reported that special coordination had to be carried out because of the Easter holidays, and the child did not have travel documents.

Burke said that the payment for the air ambulance was made by a generous donor, which is very rare, since air ambulance fees range from US$18,000 to US$30,000, and the payment for the bill will not have to be taken from the local Burn Victims Fund, according to the San Pedro Sun.

Neighbors and other concerned residents have planned a fundraiser that is to take place on Sunday, April 12. Monies raised will go towards assisting the family with any additional expenses. After the mother is released from the hospital, there are plans of getting her to Boston, where she can be with her child.

Anyone wanting to help or contribute to the cause can contact Miriam Zaldivar at 628-3514 or Susana Eiley at 662-2121.

Amandala

Posted By: Latt Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/09/15 04:59 PM
In the US there is an organization/website to help raise funds for families like this one. It's called Go Fund Me.

Could someone locally try to set up an account for this family?

http://www.gofundme.com
Posted By: Marty Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/10/15 11:42 AM
There is a benefit this Sunday by Boca del rio Park

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Posted By: Diane Campbell Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/10/15 01:29 PM

Poverty and ignorance combine to maim and kill.

We need basic community level parenting classes. This did not need to happen. Time for the local primary school to sponsor parenting outreach.
This is not the first child who had lice and paid a heavy price. Some mothers use Baygon on children's heads too .... I recall one child who died from that.
Posted By: Marty Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/12/15 11:07 AM
Fundraiser this morning, please help if you are able....
SUNDAY, April 12th at the Boca Del Rio area, from 10AM - 5PM. Food (Pibil & Turkey Dinner, etc) and drinks will be on sale.

My wife is a long time teacher, and recommends using mayonnaise to get rid of head lice.... Gasoline and rum are often used here, but Mayonnaise is a better option.
Posted By: bywarren Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/12/15 12:28 PM
It would be nice if the schools were to hand out printed literature on the available safe home remedies and over the counter products available to get rid do head lice. Any by the way, mayonnaise is not one of those commonly recommended. There are much better home remedies.
Posted By: Katie Valk Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/12/15 12:46 PM
Bush med uses wild custard apple seeds
Posted By: Wizardofaahs Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/12/15 03:40 PM
The proper medical shampoo is available at the polyclinic.
Posted By: Marty Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 04/16/15 07:53 PM

Burn victims responding positively to medical treatment

Burn victims 9-year-old Katerin Michel Perez and her mother Carolina Dominguez Meza are responding well to medical treatments and making small but positive improvements. Perez is undergoing treatment at the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Boston Massachusetts, USA, after she suffered 3rd degree burns to 53% of her upper body. Her mother, who received 2nd degree burns, is at the intensive care unit at the Karl Huesner Memorial Hospital in Belize City. The two received the injuries during an unfortunate accident inside their home on April 3rd.

The mother received burns to the hand, arms and part of her face. According to Carolina's mother Olga Meza, her daughter is showing positive signs and reacting well to the treatment in Belize. "Carolina remains hospitalized and is receiving treatments for her burns. Her swelling has gone down, she has received the first skin treatment, and is preparing for the second," explained Meza. She added that the intense treatment has caused some pain, but Carolina has remained conscious and in good spirits. "We are uncertain as to how long she will remain hospitalized."

At home, friends and neighbors of the family, as well as concerned residents of the island hosted a fundraiser to assist the family financially. By all indications, the food sale and beach party on Sunday April 12 was a huge success. Organizers say that they are still trying to collect pledges and they are expected to make an announcement as to how much money was raised very soon.

Click here to read the rest of the article in the San Pedro Sun

Posted By: Marty Re: Hope For Badly Burnt Child - 10/23/19 11:48 AM
Burn victim, physical therapist at Shriners Hospitals for Children develop enduring bond

When Michelle was 9 years old, her face, hands and upper body were gravely burned in a kitchen accident at her home on San Pedro Island in Belize.

Her father's boss quickly arranged for Michelle to be flown to Shriners Hospitals for Children in Boston, where she spent seven months undergoing countless surgeries and extensive skin grafts.

Those dark weeks and months were foggy, but there's one thing Michelle remembers clearly: all the love and care she received from her physical therapist, Lori Turgeon.

The pair quickly formed a lasting bond.

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"She's definitely a piece of my heart forever," said Lori, a mother of two boys and director of therapeutic services at Shriners. "She's my daughter. She's the girl I never got to have."

Every year, Michelle travels to Shriners for treatment.

Now 14, Michelle is back in Boston for several months. She's undergone surgery to put skin grafts under her right arm and she'll undergo another surgery next week to improve the function of her right eyelid.

During a visit to Shriners this week, Lori hugged Michelle close, through tears and laughter, as they talked about Michelle's brave recovery.

The accident happened after Michelle got head lice at school and a woman told her mother to put gasoline in her daughter's hair to kill them. "I was in the kitchen and the stove was on," Michelle told me, "so I got burned."

She was taken to a local hospital and then flown to Boston with her father. Michelle's mother was burned and had to stay home for treatment.

Michelle had used her hands to protect herself and put out the flames, and several of her fingers needed to be amputated. The day before the surgery, Michelle asked the doctor why he had to amputate her fingers and her courage and maturity is something Lori won't ever forget.

"That was something that always stuck with me, how she really was so resilient even in that moment when she had so much going on, to be able to advocate for herself, to say, 'Are you sure this needs to happen?' " Lori recalled. "It was a tough moment for all of us."

Months of rehabilitation, often painful, followed. Lori was by Michelle's side as she worked hard to regain the use of her hands and walk again after a long stay in a hospital bed. Lori tried to make it fun with games. They made puppets and Play-Doh animals.

"She always knew that she was going to get better," Lori said of Michelle.

October is National Physical Therapy Month.

Michelle tears up talking about the advice Lori has given her about other people's questions and stares. "She would say she is here to help me," Michelle said, "and make me feel confident."

"You're still the same person on the inside," Lori said. "Michelle is intelligent and sweet and smart and extremely good at advocating for herself. She's strong and it shows in everything she does."

Over the years, Lori has watched Michelle learn to lead a full life again. She's gone bowling and played mini golf. Back home, Michelle's at school.

There's so much more to Michelle than her injury. She's been a fashionista since kindergarten and she wants to become a marine biologist and astronaut.

There's no limit to what Michelle can do.

Boston Herald
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