Gunnar Woodring – Bellefonte, Pa.

What started as a fever, cough and congestion quickly became something much more serious. When Gunnar's breathing worsened, his parents trusted their instincts and returned to the emergency room. That decision made all the difference.

Gunnar got sick with what seemed like a typical childhood illness — fever, cough and congestion. But by the next day, he’d stopped eating and continued to get worse, despite seeing his pediatrician. His parents brought him to the emergency room, but about 6 hours after being discharged, Gunnar woke up unable to breathe. His mother knew something was terribly wrong and took him back to the ER immediately.

At Geisinger Janet Weis Children's Hospital, the medical team discovered Gunnar's condition had progressed from a viral infection to a bacterial coinfection, then to sepsis and septic shock with respiratory failure. He had pharyngitis, tracheitis and bronchopneumonia — an overwhelming infection affecting his entire respiratory system. The upper airway obstruction made breathing nearly impossible. Gunnar needed immediate intubation, mechanical ventilation, fluid resuscitation and medications to maintain his blood pressure.

The pediatric ICU (PICU) team at Geisinger used advanced monitoring and lifesaving interventions to care for Gunnar, including a moment during the crisis when he went into a brief cardiac arrest. The moment was terrifying for his family, but the skilled PICU team brought him back. Watching Gunnar not only recover, but return to “being Gunnar again" was nothing short of amazing for everyone involved.