Baby's liver transplant separates Nunavut family for nearly a year
Parents and baby in Yellowknife while other 3 children are with relatives in Kugluktuk
The parents of a Kugluktuk baby in Yellowknife for medical treatment are looking for help to reunite their family.
Ian Niptanatiak and Jordeen Tiktalek's daughter Mandy recently underwent a liver transplant in Edmonton.
Now age one, Mandy was first hospitalized in Yellowknife when she was four and a half months old, then medevaced to Edmonton. Her liver wasn't functioning properly.
Doctors told them that a transplant was necessary and the sooner the better.
Jordeen said it was "heartbreaking" to get the news.
"She was getting sicker and sicker and they said if we were still waiting by March, April, she would be gone."
But Mandy was lucky.
"We only waited one month for a transplant," said Ian. "Some other families waited a year, two years."
"In the beginning it was hard but today I thank God every day for her," said Jordeen.
Now Mandy is on the long road to recovery, though she will always be on medication. She was transferred from Edmonton to Yellowknife in May.
"I feel much better being closer to home," Jordeen said. "One step closer to home."
But Mandy won't be medically cleared to return home to Kugluktuk for good until November.
Meanwhile Jordeen hasn't been home for almost a year. Ian quit his job to come to Yellowknife as the second medical travel escort Mandy requires in case Jordeen gets sick, as the child cannot be exposed to sick people.
"I already had four different escorts now, so he's the fifth one," said Jordeen.
The couple's three boys, ages 11, 8 and 4, are being looked after by relatives. Jordeen is concerned about the burden that's placing on her elderly mother, who is also caring for Jordeen's father, so she'd like to bring the boys to Yellowknife for a few weeks to give their relatives a break.
"I tried asking medical travel to see if they can come here [but] they can't do anything," she said.
Ian started a Gofundme page to try and raise $5,000 — the cost of three round trip tickets between Kugluktuk and Yellowknife.
The family is hoping Mandy may also be able to go home to Nunavut for a few days next month as preparation for her release in November.