LOUISVILLE, Ky. — You can take every precaution to keep the coronavirus at bay, but there’s no guarantee it won’t hit home. A local pediatrician found out the hard way after spending weeks away from her family.
”I went to work and then would come home and it was a very quiet existence. Anyone that has children knows it's weird being in a quiet house again," Dr. Andrea Krause, a pediatrician with Norton Healthcare, said.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Kentucky, Dr. Krause moved out of the house and into her family's rental property. She knew any chance of contracting the virus could harm her young children at home, particularly her son.
“Part of our family's lifestyle the last 3 years has been to keep Drew away from illnesses like that," she said. Her 6-year-old son, Drew has Leukemia and just hit a milestone back in February.
"He literally just finished chemo...and so l was just really not willing to risk that for our family. To me, having made sacrifices before for him, I wasn't about to be lax, and let something like that happen if I could at all control it.”
Just a couple weeks into the separation from her kids, Krause’s husband called about their 9-year-old daughter, Amelia, who was running a fever.
"He said, 'I don’t know what’s going on, but she wasn’t acting herself.' And immediately, as soon as I got that call, I was like, I don't know what else this could be," Dr. Krause said.
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Amelia was positive for COVID-19. But it's uncertain how she contracted it.
“I mean, does anybody ever really know?” Krause asked. “It was a way more impressive illness than I gave it credit for, for pediatrics. It really took her down.'
Krause immediately came home to be with Amelia.
“That poor child. She had fevers every single day for about 12 days, which is a long time," Krause said.
The boys had since moved out, hoping it wouldn’t spread to Drew.
“I didn’t see him other than FaceTime encounters for about a month," Krause said.
Fortunately, the distance worked, and today, everyone is healthy at home. Amelia did, however, develop some bragging rights.
“She’s so cute. She's so proud of herself that she beat coronavirus, which is adorable to hear her talk about it. Unfortunately, she also thinks she deserves a Make a Wish trip, which is what my son did in the fall. I’m like, Amelia, that’s great. We’ll reward you, but maybe not like that," Krause laughed.
Contact reporter Brooke Hasch at bhasch@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Hasch) and Facebook.
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