An 8-month-old child died of dengue fever and Covid-19 in the Federal District, last Wednesday (28/2). The cause of Helena Alves Martins Dourado’s death is stated on the death certificate.
Helena’s mother, Gabriela Alves Martins de Oliveira, says that her daughter started feeling ill on Sunday (25/2). The family sought care from the public health network for the child at least four times before her death, but the girl was not hospitalized.
Gabriela told the column that her daughter had a fever on Sunday and was taken to Planaltina Hospital, but the baby was reportedly released. “She had an episode of vomiting, but as she no longer had a fever, [o hospital] sent me home. He didn’t tell me anything about Covid,” she said.
The following day, Monday (26/2), the child was taken to the Basic Health Unit (UBS). At the location, according to her mother, Helena was well looked after and there the health professionals tested her for dengue fever and advised her to take a blood count test to count her platelets.
The mother said she was “desperate” and decided to look for the Sobradinho Regional Hospital, still on Monday, where she waited for seven hours and was seen after seeking the direction of the health unit.
“At Sobradinho Hospital, they put an orange bracelet on her and I spent seven hours waiting for care. The doctor said it was nothing, did a blood count, put an access in her, gave her serum. Then the doctor said: ‘I’m not going to keep her here because she doesn’t have a fever, she’s urinating, so we understand that she doesn’t have anything’”, reported Gabriela.
On Tuesday (27/2), Gabriela said she took her daughter to the UBS during the day. Her mother bought dipyrone, paracetamol and serum to give at home. At night, the girl got worse and vomited six times. According to the mother, the child, despite vomiting, felt “crazy thirsty”. “She vomited six times at night, however, she drank milk and water. She felt crazy thirsty, very thirsty. She vomited and breastfed. But she didn’t have a fever,” she said.
Gabriela said that her daughter died on Wednesday morning (28/2), in her arms. “When it was morning, everything happened. She was already very soft. I went to give her a bath and her extremities were cold, I tried to give her milk and she didn’t want it anymore. She died in my arms, there was no way. She arrived at the hospital already dead,” she reported.
“They put an oximeter on her, but she was no longer responding. At Planaltina Hospital I had full support, they spent an hour trying to revive her. If there was a mistake, it was at Sobradinho Hospital,” she said. Gabriela said that at no point was she informed about the possibility that the girl had been infected by Covid.
“Nobody asked for a Covid test. Only after she died. That’s why it took 24 hours to release my daughter’s body, which was very bad”, reported the child’s mother. See the death certificate:
Death certificate of the child who died of dengue and Covid in DF
The child’s body was buried in the Planaltina Cemetery amid strong commotion. Family and friends released white and pink balloons in honor of Helena.
After her daughter’s death, Gabriela wants to issue a warning to all mothers. “I come to make this report and this complaint, because my daughter died because she did not receive adequate care in Sobradinho. She should have been hospitalized and was sent home,” she lamented.
The column contacted the Department of Health about Helena’s case, but received no response until publication. The space remains open for possible demonstrations.
Dengue
The Federal District has been in a state of emergency since January due to the dengue epidemic.
The country’s capital recorded, as of this Friday (1/3), 77 deaths from dengue in 2024, according to the Ministry of Health. Another 60 deaths are under investigation.
Also according to the Ministry of Health panel, the DF had 102.7 thousand cases of dengue in the year, so far.
