BROOKLYN CENTER, Minnesota – A Minnesota father is in mourning after his wife died of COVID-19 complications on July 19. She had just previously given birth to a healthy baby via C-section, KMSP reported.
Juan Duran’s wife, Aurora, who was pregnant with her third child, was admitted to North Memorial Hospital in Brooklyn Center located in northwestern Minneapolis with symptoms of coronavirus. By June 19, she was put on a ventilator, according to KMSP.
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“She is a 35-year-old healthy woman with no pre-existing conditions,” Duran told KMSP. “We never thought this could happen to our family.”
Doctors at North Memorial hospital determined that in order to save her and her baby’s life, she would have to have an emergency C-section, according to Duran.
“That’s when it hit me. I was thinking ‘okay she’s going to get through this, a few days at the hospital.’ But when I received that phone call it just hit me,” Duran told KMSP.
Aurora delivered a 10-week premature baby girl named Andrea while on a ventilator. Her condition got better while she was in the NICU, but Aurora’s condition worsened.
Doctors advised Duran that Aurora would get an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO treatment to preserve the functions of heart and lungs from outside her body, but the hospital she was treated at was not able to offer the treatment. The only option was to transfer her to another hospital, but Duran’s requests were ultimately denied, KMSP reported.
Duran hopes that his story will bring awareness of COVID-19 and hopes people will take precautions to curb the spread.
“Just be cautious because you could be healthy just like my wife and still end up in the ICU on the ventilator,” Duran told KMSP.
A GoFundMe was set up by Duran to lessen the burden of hospital bills, but the funds will now be used to prepare for Aurora’s funeral. Over $20,000 has been raised so far with a goal of $25,000.