Coronavirus NSW: Parents of vulnerable kids go into hyper-lockdown

Coronavirus is a serious risk to the elderly, but it is also a threat to the young, vulnerable and immune compromised. These Sydney parents have gone to the next level of lockdown to protect their little ones.

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Hollee Austin has taken lockdown to a whole new level, never leaving her home and even her husband can only contact her over the phone.

All because she cannot risk her miracle baby Skylah.

Born at 24 weeks and weighing only 475 grams, Skylah is one of the tiniest babies to ever survive. Like most babies born in the grey zone, her lungs were damaged and even normal cold viruses like respiratory syncytial virus or RSV can pose a lethal threat.

Skylah Austin was born at 24 weeks in February and at just 475 grams, she is one of the smallest babies to survive.

Each year dozens of premature babies end up in ICU on life support with bronchiolitis caused by RSV. No-one knows what COVID-19 would do.

After five months in hospital, Skylah got to go home but, a few months later in November, she caught RSV and ended back in hospital with pneumonia.

“She got really sick and was in hospital for two weeks,” Mrs Austin, 35, said.

So when COVID-19 hit, Mrs Austin went into full lockdown in March.

“We’ve been locked away since early March, before it got bad but the doctor said isolate now.”

Family and friends can only contact her by phone and neighbours do her shopping. Then there is her husband.

Peter Austin is a fly-in, fly-out worker with the mines in Queensland. On his last flight to Emerald in Queensland in early March, a fellow passenger had COVID-19.

Skylah with dad Peter Austin and mum Hollee on her first birthday. Peter was exposed to coronavirus on a flight to Qld.

“He got a call saying there was someone on board with the virus and he said he just wasn’t flying again,” she said.

But the decision was taken out of Mr Austin’s hands anyway as the Queensland border closed and now he is stuck in Emerald.

“We don’t know when we will see each other, he wanted to chuck it in and come home but I said stay there so we FaceTime daily. Skylah loves seeing him.

But Hollee doesn’t mind doing it tough. She risked her own life to get Skylah across the line.

“I’m grateful we have a big home, we just go out to the backyard, I don’t even take her for walks outside,” she said.

Skylah with her mum Hollee Austin. They will stay within the perimeter of their Camden home to protect her from viruses. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

RSV rates are significantly lower in the community because children are not spreading the virus, according to Campbelltown paediatrician Dr Andrew McDonald.

“This is the quietest we’ve ever had without a shadow of a doubt and it is because of the reduction of virus transmission,” he said.

“RSV is a real problem, these babies, they are very susceptible. RSV is the one that worries us, there is no immunisation for it.

“The big unknown with COVID is we have a significant number of kids with pre-existing conditions like preterm, cerebral palsy, and cystic fibrosis and we are worried about these kids.”

Mrs Austin is not coming out until Skylah is safe.

“I’m not risking it, I’ve just locked ourselves up and, if we are locked up for six months so be it — at least we will be healthy.”

The Killoran family have formed a protective bubble about Harry, 2, who has cystic fibrosis. Photo: Sam Ruttyn

Across town in Willoughby, the Killoran family has formed a protective fort around two-year-old Harry, who was born with cystic fibrosis. Handwashing, social distancing and the isolation had been a way of life even before COVID-19.

Even a small cold can land a child with cystic fibrosis in hospital and damage lungs to the point of reducing life expectancy.

“It’s been terrifying there is a lack of information about COVID and children with CF because any respiratory virus is a real worry for anyone with CF,” Harry’s mum Sally said.

At six months Harry ended up in ICU with rhinovirus — the common cold — and ever since, they have been hypervigilant.

Sally Killoran with her son Harry who suffers from cystic fibrosis. Isolation helps keep Harry healthy. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“Our house is a fortress against germs anyway. When anyone comes home, like when my child comes home from school, she undresses and we wash her clothes and she has a bath or shower,” she said.

“They hand wash, we are very good at it. It was hard to buy sanitiser so I made it myself.”

What the family hopes is that this pandemic will, in the long term, protect kids with CF

“I’m cautious about silver linings to COVID-19 but the silver lining for our family is that Harry’s generation will be more aware of the importance of hand hygiene for infection control, which will in fact increase his life expectancy.”

Originally published as Coronavirus NSW: Parents of vulnerable kids go into hyper-lockdown