It was a scorching, summer’s day in December 2022, when Melina and her husband, Eddie along with their six boys, Tiaan, Zander, Olivier, Kepler, Liefling and Reinhardt had returned home from the annual ‘Kids Fun Run with Thomas’ (now Puffing Billy).
The family were especially grateful for their pool on days like those and had decided to go for a swim that afternoon. After a while, Melina announced she was heading inside to feed baby Reinhardt. Liefling (Lief) toddled inside behind them and the older children went to help their dad in the garden.
“Lief loves our robot vacuum, ‘Lucy’ so he was busy following Lucy around the kitchen while I fed the baby,” recalls Melina.
Melina explains that as the baby finished feeding, she went to find Lief.
“The vacuum was still buzzing around but Lief was no longer following it…I assumed he’d gone outside to his dad and brothers but to make sure, I began looking for him around the yard,” she says.
But Lief was nowhere to be found.
Melina had a ‘gut instinct’ that something wasn’t right, and she ran down the long garden pathway to the pool.
To her horror, somehow, the pool gate was ajar. It was then she saw Lief, floating in the pool.
Melina dove in. Lief was completely unresponsive, so she began performing CPR on her toddler.
“I started to scream as loud as possible because I knew Eddie had the chainsaw going… I cut through the noise because he and the boys came running.”
One of the boys called Triple Zero, while Melina and Eddie performed CPR. At one point, they recognised a heartbeat, however, it was quickly lost again.
“Two firetrucks, two mobile intensive care units, three ambulances and police had raced to our home, all our neighbours were on the street, it was mayhem,” explains Melina.
Lief was rushed into the ambulance with at least three paramedics working on him. There was no room for Eddie or Melina – they had to trust that he was in the best hands.
Eddie raced to follow the ambulance while Melina, distraught, was required to ‘walk the police through’ what happened which was incredibly distressing for her
Eventually, after ensuring the rest of her boys were safe and cared for, Melina’s friend drove her to Monash Children’s Hospital to meet her husband and be with her son.
“Lief was in a room surrounded by what looked like more than 30 doctors and nurses. He had tubes coming out of him, and he’d been intubated,” said Melina.
Lief was soon moved to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) where Dr Sunit and his colleague, Dr Felix explained that he would be placed in an induced coma for five days, to allow his little body and brain to rest and heal.
“They told us the realities of the situation and prepared us for the worst. We were fairly convinced we were going to lose him; we were preparing ourselves to turn off the ventilator.”
During this time, the deeply religious family prayed night and day for Lief’s recovery.
Melina and her family were deeply comforted by all the support they received, in particular from the incredible nurses in PICU. They were so wonderful with Lief, and with us.
There was even a beautiful nurse, Rani, who made us traditional South African food, which was so thoughtful, we’ll never forget those nurses.”
After five days, Lief had a brain scan, and the family then faced an anxious 24-hour wait for the results.
Melina met with Dr Felix the following day who said that miraculously, the scans were clear. Lief didn’t have any brain damage.
With even the doctors in joyful disbelief, Melina and her family were able to breathe, just a little, as they began waking Lief from his coma.
This delicate process took approximately three days.
“Each day, Lief made enormous progress, it was like watching all the light switches slowly come back on,” explained Melina.
“I recall Dr Sunit standing outside Lief’s room just watching him as though he couldn’t comprehend how this little boy had been on the brink of death, and was now breathing on his own, showing no signs of brain damage.”
Lief spent another fortnight in the ward improving each day. Melina, Eddie and the doctors and nurses were now preparing for his long-term rehabilitation outside of the hospital, something they wouldn’t have thought possible three weeks earlier.
On the 21st of December, Lief was officially discharged from Monash Children’s Hospital and walked himself to the car. Lief was going home in time for Christmas.
Though Lief is still undergoing regular rehabilitation, speech and music therapy, today, Lief is a happy, healthy four-year-old boy.
He shows no fear of the water and is well on his way to being a proficient little swimmer.
“We simply cannot express our gratitude enough to the team at Monash Children’s Hospital. The care, compassion and love they showed Lief and our family during the most horrific time, is immeasurable,” says Melina.
View Lief’s story on Channel 10 news here or by clicking on the thumbnail below.
Every Breath Counts… and so does your support, that’s why, this Festive Season, we’re asking you to help us fund a state-of-the-art ventilator for the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at Monash Children’s Hospital.
This vital equipment will provide essential breathing support for our most critically ill children ensuring they receive the appropriate care when they need it most.
The ventilator used for Lief, allowed his brain and body to heal – without it, he likely would not have recovered.
You can make your much-needed donation online today or call us at the Monash Health Foundation on (03) 3549 2700.
Whatever your gift this festive season, you can be certain that it will help change lives.
Lief and his father
