Father of baby hospitalized with Covid-19 makes impassioned plea to get vaccinated
An Arkansas father of a 1-year-old hospitalized due to Covid-19 pleaded with people to get vaccinated, so other babies don’t need to suffer like his son.
Kyle Butrum said the hardest part of their situation is that he cannot be in the hospital with his son Carter.
“We can’t be there. I mean, it’s just one thing to have a child with an illness and to be there and help, but just due to the hospital regulations with their visitor restrictions, I mean, I can’t even go in. I don’t blame the hospital for that. They’re just trying to protect their employees as well, that their employees have families. So I don’t blame them for that, but it’s terrible. You can’t even communicate with the people that are trying to help,” he said on CNN’s “New Day.”
Butrum said Carter is on oxygen and “it’s been really touch-and-go.”
“His doctors are still treating the buildup in his lungs, trying to get that out with breathing treatments. And that’s moving along. The good thing for him now is that he’s kept his fever down for the past 24 hours. So that’s a good sign. Really what’s hurting him the most at this point, I think, outside the oxygen, is the exhaustion. You know, it’s so difficult for anyone really when you can’t sleep but especially someone that doesn’t understand the gravity of the situation, and a baby is used to sleeping,” he said.
Butrum said he appreciates people reaching out to offer help, but said “the gravity of the situation is there’s nothing you can do to help me.”
“I can’t go to the hospital. I can’t even help him. There’s nothing you can do to help the family members. … The only thing you can do to prevent someone else from doing this is to get your vaccine so��that another child doesn’t have to do this, and another family doesn’t have to send their kid away, so another father doesn’t have to stand at the back of an ambulance and wonder if that’s the last time you’re going to see your son, because you can’t go with them,” said Butrum, choking up and holding back tears.
“That’s how you can help me. I hate to be so blunt about it, but there’s nothing you can do to help me. The only thing you can do to help me is help the next person,” he continued.
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