Help the Shaw’s with Hailey’s Medical Expenses

Hello friends and generous givers! I have started this fundraiser for my family, Jason & Alicia Shaw, who are dealing with unexpected medical expenses for their 9 year old daughter, Hailey, who suffered from what would normally be considered a simple sinus infection but turned into an infection with brain surgery that put her on a much longer recovery than any simple cold would normally be!

The short version:

Hailey was taken to the Sutter Amador Emergency Department on Saturday, 06/24/23 with a very swollen right eye. The ER found that she had a mass behind her eye. Unknown as to what this was, they sent her by ambulance to UC Davis Medical Center to have a specialist diagnose what was causing the mass and the severe swelling.

They did CT scans, bloodwork, and then the MRI...

The MRI showed what no one expected. The sinus infection snuck through an area where most people have a thin layer of bone, but Hailey is missing a small portion of this bone. This allowed for the "bug" to go further into her head. Specifically behind her eye and beyond into the layer between her brain and the skull. The doctor explained that this was causing her TREMENDOUS pain from not only swelling, but the "bug" was eating through a thin layer of bone behind her nose and also above her left eyebrow! This was the area that was causing concern due to it lying directly on her brain membrane.

Monday and Tuesday the doctors were hopeful that treatment with strong antibiotics would be able to avoid surgery. As of Tuesday night, the doctors were still not solid on what the surgery would look like nor if they would be doing one for sure. They wanted to continue antibiotics. Hailey had been in good spirits for the most part with some pain, but had moments of low pain and could laugh and have fun talking on the phone.

Fast forward to today, Wednesday, 06/28/2023. This morning her situation changed quickly. Hailey went into an extreme amount of pain. She no longer was smiling or having conversations. One of the doctors came to the room and advocated for Hailey by reaching out to the Neurosurgeon and saying that it was time to do the surgery. The ball started rolling and surgery was scheduled.

By 2:30pm today she was taken to surgery. The first part of the surgery was done by the ENT doctor who went through the sinuses and cleaned out the blob of infection which is where the most pressure was. The second part of the surgery was done by a Neurosurgeon and they drilled a small hole in her skull on the left side of her temple. This is where they drained the remaining infection between her brain and her skull. They were able to get most of this removed.

The doctors all came up to the room after Hailey made it back from surgery. They all gave amazing updates and said how well surgery went. But the reality then came into the conversation.

This surgery was a success but it has a long road of treatment. Hailey will be in the hospital for approximately 2 more weeks. They want to watch over her due to the location of the infection being so very close to the brain, but also to make sure it does not come back or eat through any more bone. She will be given a pic line. This will allow for intravenous administration of the antibiotics to her when she is finally able to leave the hospital.

Jason has barely left Hailey's bedside. He is also the main provider for the family and he will be unable to work during this time. Now he is looking at staying at hotels in between stays at the Ronald McDonald House and Kiwana's Family Home when they are available. Although these are low cost options with high demand and low availability, they are still trying to maintain a household with their other to children. Add that to the costs associated with being out of town. One of them will always be staying near UC Davis as they won't be leaving Hailey for long periods of time.

Jason will not be working during this time period. Insurance will cover a good portion of the costs, but co-pays add up over a 3 week+ period. Between loss of pay and co-pays, this puts this family in need of some help.

Most importantly, we ask for your prayers. And also a donation of any amount to help with gas, hotel rooms, household expenses while Jason is off of work. Any amount will help them. They are so humbled by the people who have offered assistance here at the hospital and at home. They are a giving family themselves, so to see this come full circle is a true blessing.

Thank you in advance for blessing my family. We will continue Hailey's updates and your prayers are appreciated!

Thank you God for her healing!

Please click for Hailey’s Progress and Updates or to send an encouraging message to her parents!