...First Do No Harm

...First Do No Harm is a 1997 American made-for-television drama film directed by Jim Abrahams about a boy whose severe epilepsy, unresponsive to medications with terrible side effects, is controlled by the ketogenic diet. Aspects of the story mirror Abrahams' own experience with his son Charlie. Plot The film tells a story in the life of a Midwestern family, the Reimullers. Lori (played by Meryl Streep) is the mother of three children, and the wife of Dave (Fred Ward), a truck driver. The family are presented as happy, normal and comfortable financially: they have just bought a horse and are planning a holiday to Hawaii. Then the youngest son, Robbie (Seth Adkins), has a sudden unexplained fall at school. A short while later, he has another unprovoked fall while playing with his brother, and is seen having a convulsive seizure. Robbie is taken to the hospital where a number of procedures are performed: a CT scan, a lumbar puncture, an electroencephalogram (EEG) and blood tests. No cause is found but the two falls are regarded as epileptic seizures and the child is diagnosed with epilepsy. Robbie is started on phenobarbital, an old anticonvulsant drug with well-known side effects including cognitive impairment and behavior problems. The latter cause the child to run berserk through the house, leading to injury. Lori urgently phones the physician to request a change of medication. It is changed to phenytoin (Dilantin) but the dose of phenobarbital must be tapered slowly, causing frustration. Later, the drug carbamazepine (Tegretol) is added. Meanwhile, the Reimullers discover that their health insurance is invalid and their treatment is transferred from private to county hospital. In an attempt to pay the medical bills, Dave takes on more dangerous truck loads and works long hours. Family tensions reach a head when the children realize the holiday is not going to happen and a foreclosure notice is posted on the house.