Rare access to children in long-term COVID study reveals daily challenges facing families
Danielle Mitchell, right, watches as her daughter, Brooklynn Chiles, 8, is examined during a follow-up visit at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Feb. 11, 2022. Brooklynn’s father, Rodney Chiles, died of COVID-19 last year and Brooklynn tested positive three times. She is part of a National Institutes of Health-funded multiyear study at the hospital, looking at the impact of COVID-19 on children’s health and quality of life. (AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster)
By Carolyn Kaster and Colleen Long
A routine photo opportunity at a Washington, D.C., hospital turned into a moving photo and text package exploring the long-term challenges faced by children and their families coping with COVID-19. AP photographer Carolyn Kaster and reporter Colleen Long told the stories of young children whose bouts with COVID have caused searing pain for the youngsters,and baffled and frightened their parents.
More than 12.7 million children in the U.S. have tested positive for coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic. And although children usually aren’t hit as hard as adults,some do get seriously ill,and some suffer unexplained symptoms long after the virus is gone — what’s often called long COVID. Others get reinfected,while some seem to recover well, only to be struck later by a mysterious condition that causes severe organ inflammation. Doctors at Children’s National Hospital in Washington are studying children to find out why.
Lexie Stroiney, 6, curls up in a plethysmography chamber during a break in her pulmonary function test at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. Lexie had COVID-19 and is part of a multiyear study looking at the impact of COVID-19 on children’s physical health and quality of life. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Kaster was at the hospital early last November to photograph the first vaccines given to elementary-age children. On that assignment she also found a diverse community of families trying to understand what was happening to their children with COVID,and seeking appropriate care. Many wanted to be part of the hospital study funded by the National Institutes of Health to help find answers for themselves and others in the same circumstances.
Working with the hospital’s public relations team,Kaster contacted families that might want to tell their story. Some chose not to be part of the story; others were still grieving the loss of a parent to COVID-19. But some were more comfortable sharing their lives.
Kaster spent a lot of time not taking pictures,getting to know the families and their struggles,and helping them understand the coverage she had in mind: the impact of COVID and long COVID on the children and those close to them. As a result,she had months of remarkable access to hospital visits,treatments and the home life of three families. “They shared so much,” she said.
Brooklynn Chiles, 8, looks at her smartphone as her mother, Danielle Mitchell, works from home in Washington, Feb. 9, 2022. She has had COVID three times and is part of a multiyear study at Children’s National Hospital to look at long-term impacts of COVID-19 on children’s health and quality of life. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Brooklynn Chiles, 8, glances up from her smartphone at home in Washington, Jan. 9, 2022. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Family photos of Danielle Mitchell, Rodney Chiles and their daughter, Brooklynn Chiles, decorate the family’s refrigerator in Washington, Feb. 9, 2022. Rodney died of COVID-19 last year and Brooklyn has tested positive three times. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Danielle Mitchell reads directions before giving her daughter, Brooklynn Chiles, 8, a COVID-19 antigen rapid test at home in Washington, Jan. 9, 2022. Proof of a negative test was required for Brooklynn to attend third grade classes at Rocketship Rise Academy Public Charter School in Washington. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Danielle Mitchell gives her daughter, Brooklynn Chiles, 8, a COVID-19 antigen rapid test at home in Washington, Jan. 9, 2022. A negative test was required for Brooklynn to attend third grade classes at a public charter school. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Brooklynn Chiles, 8, is given a capillaroscopy exam, looking for damage or tiny clots in the small blood vessels in the nailfold, during a followup visit to Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Feb. 11, 2022. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Lexie Stroiney, 6, left, and sister Charlie, 8, right, wait with their mom Kate Forte in an exam room before Charlie has an MRI during a long day of testing at Children’s National Hospital, in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. Lexie had COVID-19 but Charlie did not. The family dynamics of the coronavirus can be tough: The sibling with the illness may get more attention, which can create problems for the others. Exhausted parents struggle with how to be supportive of all their children. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Lexie Stroiney, 6, cries as her mom, Kate Forte, holds her before a blood draw at Children’s National Hospital,in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. Research nurse Michelle Harris works left as child life specialist Katherine Rohrback tries to distract with a tablet. Among the puzzling outcomes of the coronavirus are the symptoms suffered by children. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Kate Forte kisses her 6-year-old daughter, Lexie Stroiney, as research nurse Michelle Harris demonstrates a blood draw on a stuffed animal at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Charlie Stroiney, 8, is prepped for an MRI scan during a long day of testing at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. Charlie did not have COVID-19 but her sister, Lexie, 6, did. Both are part of a multiyear study of COVID-19 effects on children’s health and quality of life. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
The animated film “Coco” is shown on a monitor as Charlie Stroiney, 8, undergoes an MRI scan at Children’s National Hospital, in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. She chose “Coco” to watch during the MRI. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Lexie Stroiney, 6, looks to respiratory therapist Tim Murray from inside a plethysmography chamber during a pulmonary function test at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Alyssa Carpenter, 2, center, sucks on her fingers during Tiny Tot ballet and tap class at Lyrique Dance in Warrenton, Va., Jan. 15, 2022. Alyssa has had COVID-19 twice and suffers long-term symptoms and had a fever the morning of the dance class. She is part of a multiyear study at Children’s National Hospital, looking at the impact of COVID-19 on children’s health and well-being. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Alyssa Carpenter, 2, runs in tap shoes during Tiny Tot ballet and tap class at Lyrique Dance in Warrenton, Va., Jan. 15, 2022. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Alyssa Carpenter, 2, looks from a window of her home in Haymarket, Va., Jan. 28, 2022. Alyssa has had COVID-19 twice and suffers long-term symptoms. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Tara Carpenter holds Alyssa Carpenter, 2, as Hailey Carpenter, 9, plays at her feet and Audrey Carpenter, 5, sits at far left, as Tara tries to work at her home office in Haymarket, Va., Jan. 28, 2022. All three girls are part of a multiyear study at Children’s National Hospital, looking at the impact of COVID-19 on children’s health and quality of life. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Alyssa Carpenter, 3, holds stickers and toys given to her as she waits for an elevator with her mother, Tara Carpenter, during a follow-up visit to Children’s National Hospital in Washington, Feb. 28, 2022. Alyssa has had COVID-19 twice and suffers long-term symptoms. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
Alyssa Carpenter, 2, laughs as she and her sister Audrey, 5, have lunch at home in Haymarket, Va., Jan. 28, 2022. Both are part of a long-term study of COVID-19’s impact on children’s health and well-being. – AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster
One subject,Brooklynn Chiles,8,has had COVID-19 three times; no one can figure out why. Her dad,Rodney,died of COVID when Brooklyn tested positive back in September. Her mom,Danielle,dreads another bout, fearing her daughter could become gravely ill even though she’s been vaccinated. “Is this the moment where I lose everyone?” she said.
Kaster was joined on some visits by Long,who juggled her duties as White House reporter,making time for this story and interviewing the families despite major news coming out of Washington. And when Long couldn’t be present, Kaster fed her descriptive color and photos to capture elements of the story.
— Pablo Martínez Monsiváis (@Pablo3names) March 14, 2022
Everyone who touched this story,from editors to the digital team,was committed to its success,among them Washington photo chief Pablo Martinez Monsivais,New York-based global enterprise photo editor Enric Marti and medical writer Lauran Neergaard,who put the story in the context of emerging science on COVID-19.
For compelling coverage of the COVID plight facing some young children and their families going into the third year of the pandemic, Kaster and Long are AP’s Best of the Week — Second Winner.
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