Paying Brittan's Medical Bills

Last week, I reached out to Stan Lewis (Brittan's father) and I asked for permission to set up a Gofundme campaign to help them pay medical expenses. Their deductible is $12,000 so this is the goal I am setting for this campaign

I have been following Brittan's story very closely, and I have been moved by the resolve she and her family has shown. The response to their plight has also been overwhelming. If it were not for the prayers that were showered upon Brittan, she might not have made it.

As of today, Brittan has already been to the hospital three times, and the medical cost will be significant. Stan has told me that he knows for sure that they are going to meet their insurance plan's deductible.

I am starting this campaign because I know that many of you would lend Brittan's family a helping hand if you were given the opportunity. Brittan's family did not ask for me to start this campaign, but when I asked them for permission, they were very grateful for any help that they will receive.

Stan has given me a synopsis of Brittan's journey:

"On Monday January 15, 2018, Brittan Lewis was diagnosed with the flu strain B after feeling bad while attending student camp the weekend prior.  She was sent home from the clinic with Tamiflu and was told her lungs were clear and she needed to rest and stay hydrated.  On Tuesday, Brittan continued to feel bad and a slight cough developed and by the morning of Wednesday January 17, it was obvious to her parents (Stan and Kristin Lewis) that she was in distress with her breathing.  They took her to the West Florida Hospital ER and thus the journey really began.  Initially, the ER doctor felt she was just dehydrated and was going to give her some fluids and send her home but then decided to keep her overnight.  By the time her dad got back with some overnight items 20 minutes later the ER staff was on full alert and prepping her for the ICU and putting her on a ventilator.  Her condition was rapidly deteriorating and septic shock had begun to set in.  Brittan’s organs began to shut down and the ICU staff struggled all day to keep her alive.  At one point her blood pressure was 50 over 18 and the ventilator was keeping her alive and she had over 14 different tubes running into and out of her body.  

Wednesday evening, the pulmonologist, who had worked with her all day, sat down with Stan and Kristin and told them that the medical team had done all they could do and were just barely keeping her alive.  He then said that she needed people to pray for her.  At that point, Stan and Kristin began to reach out to their church family, Olive Baptist in Pensacola, and a call for prayer went out by their pastor and others on social media.  People from all around the world began to pray for Brittan and within 30 minutes of that initial call for prayer, things began to change.  Brittan woke up that evening in the ICU and her vital signs began to stabilize. 

Over the next 30 days Brittan would spend 16 days in the ICU and 9 of those days would be on the ventilator.  The medical team would fight constantly to keep her blood pressure up, heart rate down, fever down, breathing stable and monitor every possible aspect of Brittan’s physical condition.  She would have multiple rounds of dialysis because her kidneys and liver had shut down and there would be multiple blood transfusions as well.  

Eventually, Brittan reached the point that she could leave the ICU.  She had become fast friends with the doctors, nurses, and techs in that area and it grieved her to say goodbye to those wonderful people.  More importantly, a real ministry of prayer had developed in the Pensacola community and across the US for Brittan.  Additionally, there were believers praying in Australia, Germany, Romania, Nepal, China, Jordan, Israel, England, Canada, Nicaragua, Kazakhstan, and many other places around the world.  God truly did miracles to save this young lady and He used so many believer who committed to pray as well as a team of wonderful medical professionals to minister life to her.  

Over the days after the ICU, Brittan would spend time in a regular room and improve enough to be released, but her stay at home would be cut short due to secondary infections that would cause her to come back to West Florida.  She would go home one more time for less than 24 hours only to return to the hospital because of high fever and a heart rate in the 150’s.  Today (February 19) she has spent 30 days in the hospital and is still at West Florida but the hope is that she will return home soon.  She will have home health care that will administer antibiotics and other meds.  Brittan has a goal of getting strong enough to return to the remainder of her senior year of high school and to be able to go on a mission trip to Costa Rica in April.  Brittan’s school, Aletheia Christian Academy, has told her that she will graduate and the teachers have been awesome to work with her.  Brittan has fought hard during this time and has seen this experience as the greatest and hardest mission trip that she has ever been on."

If you feel lead to contribute, please do so. Brittan's family has been through a lot in the past month so let's make the ending to this tough journey as bright as possible!