Mohammed Readies for Heart Valve Surgery Thanks to You!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: September 9, 2023
Woo-Hoo!!! For the fifth time since launching HeartValveSurgery.com, I am very happy to share that our community has sponsored a life-saving cardiac surgery for a child with heart disease.
Thanks to your extraordinary support, we have partnered with Gift of Life International to sponsor the heart valve surgery of Mohammed, a 14-year-old boy from Uganda, who has severe mitral valve regurgitation caused by rheumatic heart disease.
Mohammed’s Story
While I am still learning the details of Mohammed’s journey to a healthy heart, here are several details about his life and his diagnosis.
Mohammed is from the town of Mukono, which is about 20 kilometers from Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. Mohammed lives with his mother and his sister. Unfortunately, Mohammed’s father passed away in 2021.
Mohammed started feeling sick in September, 2022. He began experiencing fevers and a constant cough. Mohammed was referred to the Uganda Heart Institute for a cardiac evaluation. Due to financial constraints, Mohammed’s consult at the Uganda Heart Institute was delayed until October, 2022.
After an evaluation by cardiologists at Uganda Heart Institute, it was determined that Mohammed suffered from rheumatic heart disease and severe mitral regurgitation, a leaky heart valve. Mohammed has been admitted to the hospital twice due to heart failure.
Needless to say, Mohammed needs help.
Gift of Life Wants to Help Mohammed, But…
As many of you know, I am a big fan of Gift of Life International. This wonderful, non-profit organization has helped more than 47,500 children from 80 countries across 5 continents receive treatment for heart disease.
The mission of Gift of Life International is to provide life-saving cardiac treatment to children in need from developing countries regardless of gender, creed, or national origin. Their goal is to develop sustainable pediatric cardiac programs by implementing screening, surgical and training missions which are supported by autonomous Gift of Life programs, Rotary Global Grants and generous donors from around the world.
Here is to video to help you learn more about Gift of Life International.
After learning about Mohammed’s need for heart surgery, Gift of Life was ready to help.
The only thing Gift of Life needed was a co-sponsor for Mohammed’s surgery.
Our Community Takes Action!
So… Yes… You guessed it…
You and all the wonderful patients, family members, friends, doctors, physician assistants, nurses, hospitals, researchers and medical companies in the HeartValveSurgery.com community just co-sponsored Mohammed’s heart valve surgery. Woo-Hooo!!!!
As Rob Raylman, the CEO of Gift of Life International, stated:
“Mohammed would never have been provided the care he requires without the intervention of Gift of Life International and the generosity of the HeartValveSurgery.com community. Supplemental sponsorships such as the donation from HeartValveSurgery.com empower Ugandan doctors to care for Ugandan children.”
What Are The Next Steps For Mohammed?
Raylman wasted no time mobilizing the logistics for Mohammed’s surgery.
According to Raylman, Mohammed is now scheduled for mitral valve surgery in November.
Raylman stated, “Mohammed will be operated on during the week of November 11 at the Uganda Heart Institute in Kampala.”
Stay Tuned For Mohammed Updates!
I am so honored and thankful to be a part of the HeartValveSurgery.com community. Your support of this community has empowered us to help Mohammed and partner with Gift of Life again. You might remember that we also sponsored the heart surgeries of the following children:
To get updates about Mohammed’s journey to a healthy heart, you can subscribe to my free newsletter at this link.
Keep on tickin!
Adam
Written by Adam Pick
- Patient & Website Founder
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