Boy extubated by court order to be discharged from Sainte-Justine Hospital

A young boy who was recently extubated at Sainte-Justine Hospital due to a court order will be returning home.

The boy was successful extubated, and breathing on his own, discharged from hospital on Monday.

“It’s a great day, a big day for us,” said the boy’s mother, at a celebration for the boy in front of the hospital on Monday morning in order to thank the medical staff.

The identity of the boy’s family must remain confidential due to a publication ban.

“My child goes home today, a child who we thought wouldn’t even make it a night since last year on June 12 and he made it to 309 days,” the mother said.

“It’s a very significant step. The family is very happy, very relieved, and very grateful to the medical team. Despite the judicial battle and the difference in views between the family and the medical team with respect to the child’s medical decisions, the family has always appreciated the quality of the care that the child has received from the medical team. And, now the family is very happy that the child will finally be able to go home and try to live a more normal life,” explained lawyer Patrick Martin-Ménard in an interview with CityNews Monday.

The child was intubated in June 2022 when he was 5 years old after nearly drowning in a family pool. He is estimated to have spent 20 minutes under water.

Last November, the Sainte-Justine hospital took the boy’s parents to court – as they could not agree with the parents on treatment for the boy.

#WATCH: A joyous day for the family of a young Montreal boy who is now being discharged from hospital after a 10-month stay. The boy is now doing well and breathing on his own after a court-ordered extubation.

READ: https://t.co/jOSyNQBGRf pic.twitter.com/51M1lbt5iC

— Alyssia (@rubertuccinews) April 17, 2023

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The hospital wanted to remove the breathing tube so he could go home and receive physical therapy.

The parents would not agree with the hospital – unless the hospital agreed to reintubate the boy should problems occur.

In January, a judge ordered the boy be extubated.

The breathing tube was removed in February 2023 – a risky procedure said the family’s lawyer – with a 50 per cent chance of survival.

But he says the procedure went well.

“It is God who takes care of him through the care he receives. Of course, doctors, nurses, too,” says the boy’s mother.

#WATCH: “It’s a very significant step, the family is very happy," says lawyer Patrick Martin-Menard, on the successful extubation of a young boy at Sainte-Justine Hospital due to a court order. On Monday, the boy was being discharged from hospital.

READ: https://t.co/uGvNReqm3o pic.twitter.com/4lXVnNek1i

— CityNews Montreal (@CityNewsMTL) April 17, 2023

“The big unknown was whether the child had the capacity to breathe by himself. This information would only become known once they removed it, which is why the family wanted to keep the option of reinstalling the breathing tube, if needed, on the table, because we just did not have enough information. Fortunately, once the breathing tube removed, the child was able to breathe on his own. This child has really overcome these odds and is now able to go back home, which is from the perspective of the family, a very significant milestone,” said Martin-Ménard.

“No parent would want to be in that position. But they have remained very strong for all of this process to be able to bring their child,” said the lawyer.

In a statement the Sainte-Justine Hospital said it would continue to support the family through the different steps, and said they wanted to salute their courage.

“It’s a family that, no matter the circumstances, will always cling to its God,” said the mother.