Christina Needs Our Help! Medical Bills & Recovery

Hi there, this fundraiser is for Christina, who is near and dear to many. You may recognize her as the friendly face you first see when you enter the veterinary clinic she has been a receptionist at for nearly 16 years.

Recently, Christina has experienced several medical conditions that have resulted in hospitalization. Earlier in March she was admitted to the hospital for moderate to severe diverticulitis. After receiving IV antibiotics for several days she was discharged and would continue recovering at home.

While recovering at home she noticed some pain in her mouth that quickly turned into the entirety of her mouth (throat, roof, tongue, cheeks, lips) becoming ulcerated. Her lips were cracked, scabbed, and bloody. 2 days later, a rash began to develop and she returned to a north Austin ER. She was advised to try an over the counter itch cream and to give it time to resolve. As the rash continued to spread and worsen she returned to the ER again where she was given benadryl and a steroid. Ultimately her concerns were dismissed once again and she was sent home. Within 3 days after first noticing the mouth pain, nearly all of her body was covered in the rash with large dark lesions. Her hands and feet were solid red, the pain she was experiencing was so intense her mobility was affected and she struggled to walk. She returned to the ER for the 3rd time and was told she may have a potentially life-threatening condition, Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS). She was transferred in an ambulance to Dell Seton with specialists and a burn unit to aggressively treat the blistering rash covering her body. Once admitted, a biopsy was taken and determined she did not have SJS, but instead a similar, serious condition called Erythema Multiforme Major. She was started on IV steroid treatment, along with other medications to help with the intense itch and pain. She remained hospitalized for one week.

While hospitalized at Dell Seton, she was informed that during her prior hospitalization at a north Austin hospital for diverticulitis, she was administered IV penicillin for 2 days despite her chart indicating she had a penicillin allergy. Drug reactions can be a cause of Erythema Multiforme Major.

She is now slowly improving, although her hands and feet are both still painful and covered in blisters thus, significantly limiting what she is able to do. Her doctors expect her recovery to take an additional 2-3 weeks. It may be weeks before the rash resolves, eventually once it resolves new skin will develop. She has already missed work for the last month and does not have access to short-term disability. On top of the mounting medical bills, multiple ER co-pays, and being unable to work has created a significant financial hardship. Like all folks, she should be able to recover without the worry and burden of continued medical costs, medical debt, and figuring out how to make ends meet as she has been, and continues to be unable to work.

This experience has been traumatizing and full of pain and fear. She put her trust in the doctors at the hospital and ER in north Austin, only to be given the wrong medication and her concerns surrounding the rash dismissed multiple times resulting in a delay in treatment. She has consistently praised the physicians, nurses, and staff at Dell Seton and has remained kind and gracious through all of this (I'm still not sure how!) Christina gives so much of herself to others everyday at her job, she treats the animals at the clinic as if they were her own, and she's the type of friend that will show up for you on your best and worst days. Now it's our turn to show up for her like she has for us.