Dave McCaffery lost his precious baby daughter to an infection that should have been preventable.

Dana McCaffery was just four weeks old when her tiny heart stopped beating.

Her grief-stricken parents had lost their precious baby to whooping cough – an infection that should have been preventable, especially in a developed country like Australia.

But instead, her family have had to cope with life without their daughter and sister.

A rise in whooping cough in recent months has finally prompted Dave to talk to Mamamia. It wasn’t easy for Dave to talk to me about that terrible day but he pushed through, at times struggling not to cry and at other times expressing anger about what happened to his little girl.

This is his story …

Jo: I love this photo of Dana lying on your legs. What do you think about when you look at it today, five years after her death?

Dave: I’m actually sitting much the same way on the same lounge. It doesn’t get easier. I was reading about a mother who talked on Facebook today who is dealing with the loss of a child in a car accident and the hole in her life…that can’t be filled.

Dana is a part of our lives but a constant reminder that we’ve got to try and do something for our community. We don’t want others to experience the pain and the suffering.

Just as an FYI, you should know that this post is sponsored by VaccineHub. But all opinions expressed by the author are 100% authentic and written in their own words.

 

Jo: Dana had two older siblings and you’ve since had one more child. What role does Dana play in your family’s life today?

Dave: She is part of our family and we miss her dearly. She’s just part of our lives we can’t get back. You’ll be doing things and going on with your life and your mind will go back to that moment and you’re holding your dead daughter. It sort of hits you. You never forget. You try and do something that benefits others.

Jo: How long was Dana sick for before she became very ill?

Dave: She was healthy, putting on weight and seemingly well until 11 days old. She started getting very uncomfortable. I’ve always been a hands-on-dad, nursing the kids and bathing them. I bathed her every day of her life, Dana. Staying up at night, we’d play Andrea Bocelli to soothe her because she couldn’t breathe. Turning her on her belly and rubbing her back helped her sleep.

Jo: Dana was transferred to Brisbane Hospital when it became clear that she wasn’t getting better. Why wasn’t she transferred sooner?

Dave: I was at work when I got the message to come home as Dana was getting worse. Toni and I took her straight to Lismore Hospital  and an hour after we got there she couldn’t breathe and went blue. The nurses said it was classic whooping cough.

For two or three days they were umming and ahhing about whether she should go to Brisbane because two kids had gone up and been sent back. You just don’t realise how dangerous it is.

The doctors didn’t seem to be worried….They kept thinking she’d get better. The results came back saying she was getting better. They managed it and watched her for a day or two. They’d been through the same thing twice already. And then it got nasty, with shadowing on her lungs. She was sent to Brisbane and she died two days later.

Toni spent the nights there and I had to watch the other kids. We thought she’d be okay. But her blood pressure dropped as the disease took hold. Toni told me to come up. She didn’t tell me that the doctors had given her a 50 per cent chance of survival. When I got there it was down to 20 per cent. My niece had leukaemia and was given a five per cent chance of survival and she did. I was thinking 20 per cent was still okay.

With whooping cough the blood can thicken and, when it happens, it can’t get to the organs and the organs start to die. That’s what happened to Dana. She was given a double blood transfusion but went into cardiac arrest.

Jo: What do you have to say about those who doubt vaccinations?

Dave: People need to know how dangerous and deadly infectious diseases can be. To help prevent the community catching these potentially deadly diseases, we need vaccination. They are a medical marvel. Don’t take a risk. The benefits of vaccination far outweigh the risks. I recommend people who have questions or doubts about vaccinations, talk to their doctors, paediatricians and medical authorities. They are making a vitally important decision that not only impacts on their family but our wider community.

Jo: And what message would you like to leave with other parents?

Dave: Don’t go to Dr. Google. Access reputable sources such as Immunise Australia, Better Health Channel, Vaccine Hub, speak to doctors and obstetricians and paediatricians as well as state and federal health authorities. Let science determine your choice rather than opinion, because it’s dangerous. I wish our daughter were still with us. We will always vaccinate because it is an important community issue. It’s so vitally important that everyone, adults and all family members get the recommended whooping cough vaccination, including boosters. We need herd (community) immunity to beat this horrible disease that harms or kills infant children and it can only work if we are properly immunised. Dana contracted whooping cough in a region that has the lowest rates of vaccination in the country and the highest rates of infection. Pertussis, whooping cough, was everywhere. There is no place for complacency, if we are fully immunised, the disease will find it hard to find the vulnerable and harm or kill people, like my little baby girl.

Watch the McCaffery’s story here:

 

We want to make it a little easier for you and your family to get the facts on immunisation. VaccineHub is a go to destination for the latest health information for your baby from birth. The hub will be regularly updated with breaking news and seasonal information. For the latest on vaccination visit www.vaccinehub.com.au.

**Dave McCaffery has not received payment for his contribution. As always, the McCafferys have freely provided their daughters story to help our community understand the dangers of vaccine preventable diseases.