In some cases, parents of chronically ill children have turned out to be saboteurs but does that mean every other parent is out to torment their terminally ill child? Netflix’s Take Care Of Maya explores this concept and tries to answer the aforementioned question without holding back. It takes you through moments that will make you question humanity and doubt the sense of responsibility that some government officials have lost to their self-entitled personalities. Manifested by Henry Roosevelt, Take Care Of Maya portrays the story of the Kowalski family in vivid detail.
Right from the birth of Jack and Beata’s bundle of joy, Maya, to her teenage years, this Netflix film takes its viewers on a heartache-laden journey. It narrates the story of a mother, Beata, who is challenged by someone who apparently holds more power over her daughter’s future than her. Is Beata a real-life person? Is Take Care Of Maya based on a true story? Here’s everything you need to know about this flabbergasting documentary!
Is Take Care Of Maya Based On A True Story?
The film commences with asking a rather prickly question regarding the childcare systems of the world. While it may be referring to Florida’s system in particular, it more or less is a jab to every country and every state’s childcare systems. It then introduces us to Jack Kowalski, an ex-firefighter who starts narrating the story of his wife, Beata, and daughter, Maya.
Roosevelt utilises Beata’s recordings and Maya’s reports to portray the Kowalski family’s journey from discovering Maya’s illness to finding a treatment for her. Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic illness with little to no treatment and a myriad of symptoms. Patients diagnosed with CRPS undergo several issues including a stabbing headache, turned-inward legs, breathing issues and more. When Beata watches her daughter suffer through these, the nurse inside her starts to work double time and the mother inside her ten times harder.
Take Care Of Maya is indeed a true documentary film, centred around Beata’s journey as she deals with her daughter’s illness and the accusations thrown her way. It made its debut on 19 June 2023, just a couple of hours ago and is on its way to becoming one of the most heart-wrenching documentaries ever constructed.
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Dr. Anthony Kirkpatrick: Who Is The Man Behind Maya’s Diagnosis?
When all the doors for Maya’s treatment were closing down, Beata knocked on Anthony Kirkpatrick’s window in 2015 for her nine-year-old daughter. Dr. Kirkprick is a renowned anesthesiologist who suggested the treatment of ketamine for Maya. According to him, CRPS can only be cured by levelling the ketamine in the body. So, Beata and Jack agreed with Anthony and started injecting ketamine into Maya’s bloodstream. The treatment worked for a while but couldn’t fully help Maya get rid of the numerous symptoms.
Kirkpatrick then suggested a ketamine-induced coma for Maya in order to help her get maximum relief from her dire condition. It was a major risk but also a golden opportunity for the Kowalski family to get a shot at happiness. With Maya’s best interests at heart, Beata and Jack agreed to Dr. Kirkpatrick’s treatment. Little did they know, it would prove to be a fatal mistake and a weapon against them.
Who Is Dr. Smith?
Take Care Of Maya isn’t just a story of a mother risking experimental treatments to save her chronically ill daughter. Rather, it is a tale of the devastation a mother bears when she’s accused of being the tormentor of her daughter.
After receiving Kirkpatrick’s treatment, Maya was allayed for a while but a while later, she relapsed again and was admitted to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in Florida. Dr. Smith is a paediatrician at this hospital who took Maya’s case into her hands. Upon discovering the ketamine-induced coma Maya’s parents put her into, Dr. Smith went towards the Florida childcare system. It was due to her that Maya was put into detention for three months, Beata had to undergo the trauma and the Kowalskis had to bear a significant loss.
Allegations on Dr. Smith claim that in association with her hospital, she purposefully kept Maya away from her parents so that they could cash in Maya’s insurance. Given that Dr. Smith once claimed Maya is not suffering from CRPD, how can the hospital provide treatment for the same disease using Maya’s insurance?
Maya asks the same question in the lawsuit filed against the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and in Netflix’s documentary series, Take Care Of Maya.
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