Kindness of strangers changes boy's life

LESS CHANCE OF MISSING: Injecting John with medicine used to be a pain. But, using infrared technology the Accuvein machine illuminates a map of veins in John's hands - making treatment time easier.

Thanks to the generosity of one stranger in particular and the help of a new medical machine life has been made a bit easier for a 3-year-old Northland boy with haemophilia.

John Davis, of Hikurangi, is a happy little boy, and is described by his mother Caroline Davis as a typical 3-year-old.

But unlike the average toddler, John has haemophilia. Multiple times a week medicine is injected into his veins, an experience that can be uncomfortable. In recent weeks, with the help of a new medical machine life has been made easier.

Haemophilia is a genetic disorder passed from the mother's side. John's body is missing "a tiny factor" needed to form and hold a blood clot.

"Normal running and jumping and walking can cause spontaneous bleeding internally so that's what we're constantly on the look out for - has a bleed happened?" John's haemophilia is severe, and his body has inhibitors which reject the medicine he's given to enable his blood to clot. This means he needs treatment more often.

Once a week medicine is injected into a port on his chest, sitting under the skin and leading directly to a vein. The other three times a week, medicine is injected by John's parents directly into his veins.

But finding the vein can be difficult. Mrs Davis says it's not uncommon for them to have to try more than once.

"John is quite happy to get the first needle in, but it's when we miss and have to say 'we need to do that again'.

"That's the hard bit about it, looking up at your 3-year-old and saying 'I'm so sorry, Mummy missed I have to try again'."

Earlier this year Mrs Davis learned of a machine, called Accuvein, which uses infrared technology to highlight where veins are so there's less chance of missing.

Mrs Davis pulls it off the shelf to show the Advocate reporter how it works.

With a 'dinosaur tooth' in hand, John pulls up his sleeve and his mother shines the light over his hand.

The machine is like an x-ray for veins; illuminated on top of the little boy's hand is a map of veins.

Priced at $7500, procuring the Accuvein seemed like a dream. But, Mrs Davis' friend, Simone Jaunay - or "the nicest person ever" - set up a fundraiser on the Givealittle website in late October.

By early November the $7000 goal had been reached - $2390 donated from the public and $4610 "selflessly" given by an anonymous donor.

"We can't ever repay that kindness but it's going to significantly make our lives easier," Mrs Davis said. "There's no way that we could have bought it without getting into debt. It's incredible."