On July 18, 2013, 3 days before the start of our medical mission trip to Santiago, Dominican Republic, ICHF received a call from Haiti that one of the young men planned for surgery the following week had been brought to the hospital in very poor condition. Jonathan, who was 16 years old at the time, was 5’7” and weighed a meager 90 pounds. Due to a previous illness of rheumatic fever, he acquired damage to his Mitral and Aortic Valves and was in severe heart failure.
He was transported immediately to Santiago, and our team was able to start caring for him upon our arrival 3 days later. After a week of medical treatment, it was determined that he was in the best condition he could be in to undergo surgery. On July 29, 2013, he underwent a double valve replacement. His surgery was long, and his heart was extremely weak after the surgery. However, he recovered well, and was eventually sent back home to Haiti a few weeks later.
During our recent trip to Haiti, Jonathan came in for a follow up echo with the ICHF cardiologist, and as you can see from the photo, he is thriving! He has grown like a weed, and is going to school and enjoying life!
