Emergent Surgery to Strength

One Friday evening, Tara Spencer’s eight-year-old daughter Zara started complaining of an earache. While she seemed fine at first, her earache quickly worsened even after treating it with Tylenol and antibiotics. The area behind her ear became swollen and Zara was in excruciating pain, crying that she was unable to hear out of the affected ear. After a second emergency room visit on Saturday and another trip to see Zara’s primary care physician on Monday, Tara was advised to take her daughter to the Emergency Department.

Tara immediately took Zara to the Emergency Department at Studer Family Children’s Hospital. At first, the doctors thought it may be mastoiditis, a common infection that affects the mastoid bone, located behind the ear. To be safe, the doctor ordered a CT scan and discovered something much worse.

Tara shares, “The doctor told us, that on top of the mastoiditis infection, Zara had an abscess on the brain that was pressing against a blood vessel which was causing a blood clot. By this point, Zara was unable to turn her head as her neck became stiff.”

Due to the urgency of the situation, the doctors decided that Zara needed emergency surgery on her brain, however, she would need to be transferred to be seen by a neurologist. Instead, the medical team jumped to action and received approval for Dr. Babcock to do the surgery at Studer Family Children’s Hospital.

Tara is incredibly grateful for the medical team’s quick resolution. “As a mom, this eliminated so much worry for me. I have two other kids at home, a job, and commitments. To know we could stay near our support and family was so wonderful.”

During Zara’s nine-day stay at Studer Family Children’s Hospital, the medical staff provided excellent care for both Zara and her family. “Zara would wake up in the night with terrors. She would be miserable. The nurses would come right in to give her some medicine. They made us as parents so comfortable. The rooms were great and large so that our two boys could come visit their sister. We were with Zara the whole time.”

Zara’s bubbly personality kept her upbeat, despite the traumatic situation. She formed a bond with her doctors and nurses. By the end of her hospital stay, Zara became interested in watching the nurses draw her blood and even gave herself her shots.

Seeing the medical staff and Zara interact in a positive manner was encouraging for Tara, especially as a mother. She says, “There was nothing better for this mama's heart than to hear the doctors and nurses joking with Zara and laughing with her and making her feel like she's good.”

Before Zara left the hospital, the medical team made sure that she had all of her follow-up appointments with the ENT, hematologist, and infectious disease doctor. They also made sure that she had all the medicine needed before going home.

With tears in her eyes, Tara has a message to the Studer Family Children’s Hospital medical staff that took care of Zara during this difficult time. “Thank you for taking care of my baby as if she were your baby. Making sure she was okay, taking the big extra step of finding a local doctor to keep her surgery local made all the difference for us.”

Today, Zara is doing well and is thriving. Tara is still in awe of her daughter at how fearless she was during her stay at the hospital. She describes her daughter as fearless, strong, and amazing. 

And, she is.