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'It can happen to anyone': Mother describes infant's bout of RSV

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Over the last week and a half, Nikki Wagar faced a parent's worst nightmare: Both her young children were severely ill and in the hospital.

Three-year-old Bennett and five-month-old Colson were both put on oxygen while in hospital, where they were undergoing treatment for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

At one point, Wagar said, Colson stopped breathing.

"A bunch of nurses rushed in and the machines were all going off and the oxygen wasn't helping and they were patting his chest really hard and just kind of encouraging him to breathe," Wagar said on CTV's Your Morning on Thursday.

Canada's pediatric hospitals are facing a wave of flu, COVID-19 and RSV. The 'multi-demic' has been particularly hard on children who returned to school in September, after two years of mostly learning online.

Coupled with limited availability of pain relief medication, parents like Wagar have been wary of seeking help for their children in the overwhelmed hospital system.

According to the latest FluWatch report from Health Canada, the influenza positivity rate fell "sharply" across the country between Dec. 11 and 31.

Despite the drop in flu cases, Wagar warned parents to be cautious of all respiratory viruses.

"I think that parents need to understand that it can happen to them. Like we're not invincible from it," she said.

 

Click the video above to hear Wagar's full story.

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