Swift Team Action Helps Sweet Home Girl Defeat Sepsis

The clock was ticking when a Sweet Home girl, Ava Murry, arrived at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis with severe leg pain. Thanks to one nurse’s quick action and a cutting-edge protocol in the Emergency Department, Ava can tell the story about the day her life was saved.

Ava, who was 12 years old at the time, maintained a rigorous schedule, balancing cheerleading and volleyball.

“My leg hurt really bad, but we thought it was from normal activities,” Ava recalled of the initial symptoms. Her family first suspected a pinched nerve or muscle strain, but the situation deteriorated rapidly. Within 24 hours, she could barely walk so her father drove her to the ER.

“I couldn’t walk at all,” Ava said. “They had to bring a wheelchair to get me into the hospital.”

In the Emergency Department, Victoria Churich, RN, immediately noticed Ava had signs of sepsis, a life-threatening condition that occurs when your body’s response to an infection spirals out of control.

For more than two years, the Emergency Department at Good Samaritan has conducted intense staff training on its new code sepsis protocol. This protocol is unique in Oregon and has had a huge, positive impact on patient outcomes, according to program coordinator Brian Delmonaco, MD. The code sepsis protocol has been used more than four dozen times, helping the hospital earn a five-star rating for sepsis care and putting it on track to being recognized among the top 10% of hospitals nationwide for sepsis care.

“We have reached a statistically significant milestone,” Dr. Delmonaco said. “Our patients who have a specialized sepsis care team typically recover better from their septic shock and have a higher chance of survival and shorter hospital stay.”

When Ava arrived at the Emergency Department on that December evening in 2023, Churich quickly followed the code sepsis protocol.

“She looked sick, and sepsis is drilled into our head — to always be on the alert for it,” Churich said. “It’s tricky because she’s a kiddo. A lot of sepsis guidelines are for adults. In the ER, children’s heart rates could be elevated because they’re scared or in pain.”

That evening, Ava’s mother, Tammy Murry, was at work in the hospital as a labor and delivery nurse. Tammy rushed to be at her daughter’s bedside. As a nurse herself, she recognized that her daughter’s body was shutting down from a hidden infection. Medical tests revealed that Ava’s sepsis was caused by multiple internal abscesses in her hip.

Thanks to Churich’s quick action, Ava received timely treatment and transportation to Randall Children’s Hospital in Portland.

“I believe in my heart Ava made it to Randall’s just in time,” Tammy said. “It was the scariest day of my life. We thought it was just a pinched nerve … she almost died.”

“I remember a bunch of people, and then everyone was freaking out,” Ava said of her last conscious moments before being intubated. She remained on a ventilator for four days.

The toll on Ava’s body was severe. “I lost so much muscle mass,” she said. “I weighed 90 pounds and then dropped down to 82 pounds. It was crazy.”

A follow-up MRI revealed a torn labrum in her hip, a result of weakening from the sepsis, and it threatens Ava’s athletic future.

“The doctor said she could keep doing physical therapy, but no more high-impact sports,” Tammy said. “The damage is so great that it is possible Ava may need a hip replacement by age 20.”

Now 13, Ava continues to adapt to the effects of sepsis. “Right now, I can do most normal activities,” she said, though certain physical activities remain off limits.

Read more about sepsis and the warning signs to recognize.