Doctors encouraged by progress of 15-year-old COVID-19 patient in coma, saying she’s entered ‘recovery stage’

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – As 15-year-old Paulina Velasquez continues to receive treatment in the intensive care unit at the Broward Health Main Campus in Fort Lauderdale, her doctors now say the girl’s prognosis is promising.

She has been hooked up to a ventilator and in a medically induced coma after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month.

“It’s very encouraging,” said Dr. Jennifer Davis. “Probably the first week of her treatment she was very, very ill, unstable I would say, and now she’s definitely on the recovery stage.”

For Velazquez’s family, the news was extremely encouraging to hear.

“That’s what they told me today and it make us very happy, and I’m excited to see her like just get up from the bed and come over here and give me a hug and kisses, and I’m gonna love her more and more,” said Orlando Velasquez, Paulina’s father.

For the past 10 days, the teen has been receiving steroids, blood thinners and Remdesivir to fight the effects of COVID-19.

She had not yet been given the opportunity to receive a vaccine shot, though family members told Local 10 News that the girl would always wear a mask in public and was overall very cautious and safe in regard to the coronavirus.

Doctors at the Broward Health pediatric wing said cases like Velasquez’s are showing up at a rate never seen before.

“Unfortunately, what’s going on now, we’ve been seeing a lot of sick pediatric patients, so I’d like to say it’s unusual, but with this variant, I think it’s not unusual,” said Dr. Davis.

Velasquez’s mother Aginieszska, who herself is fighting a milder case of COVID-19 despite being vaccinated, has been held up by her daughter’s bedside the entire time, praying for her to pull through.

“I have a strong feeling and I have so much faith that she’s recovering and getting better every day,” the girl’s mother said.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with the girl’s growing hospital bills. To visit the page, click here.

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About the Author:

Terrell Forney joined Local 10 News in October 2005 as a general assignment reporter. He was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, but a desire to escape the harsh winters of the north brought him to South Florida.