Day #9: Thursday, November 1st 'Stanley'

I received the following email on October 22nd, 2 days I left for Kenya.  It was sent to my personal email address which I only access about once a month.  I happened to see this email about an hour after it was sent to me...

Subject:  Tenwek Information

Tom,

I apologize if you are not the right source of information on the Tenwek Heart Surgery mission trips.  Your blog is the first hit on Google when I searched for Tenwek Cardiac Surgery, so this e-mail is just another burden of that popularity.

I just spent five weeks in Western Province Kenya as a medical volunteer, and one of my patients has an exam and x-ray that are incredibly suggestive of Tetrology of Fallot.  I am currently trying to explore options for the family to get care for this heart lesion and would love to learn more on how I can hook them up with Tenwek.  Currently some local contacts (a bungoma clinical officer and a bishop in the local Anglican church) are going to try to get the boy to Moi Teaching hospital in Eldoret for an echo, but I'm trying to look down the line on how the boy can get surgery.

If you have any idea on who to contact for this information I would greatly appreciate it.  Thanks so much.

Rob
Medical Student
The Ohio State University College of Medicine


I replied to Rob to let him know that his timing was impeccable since our team was leaving in 48 hours for Tenwek and would be there for 2 weeks of cardiac surgery.  The pediatric week would be the second week so that might give his patient more time to make arrangements for travel to Tenwek and get the appropriate pre-op testing.

There were a couple of follow-up e-mails between Rob, Dr. Mike and myself regarding the cost of transportation to the hospital and clinic for the required exams and tests.  I inquired if there was a way I could help with the expenses to get the little boy to Tenwek to be evaluated, but I never heard back from anyone.

Last Thursday evening we were finishing up in the OR around 7 pm and some of our team were asked to attend a dinner at a remote site.  So Dr. Mary and I walked over to the cardiology clinic to wait for some of the docs that were finishing up in clinic.  When we arrived in the clinic, Dr. Mike heard me outside the area he was evaluating a patient in and asked me to come inside.

When I walked into the exam area, he introduced me to 'Stanley' who was the little boy the medical student had contacted me about through my blog.  He and his father had made it to Eldoret for the required testing and then on to Tenwek Hospital.  I was shocked that he had made it to Tenwek, and Dr. Mike told me that he would probably be one of our patients during our pediatric week.

Dr. Mary and Michael's daughter Cille provided our team with over 100 soccer balls to give to our patients and families at Tenwek Hospital.  Many of the children playing soccer in the immediate area around Tenwek hospital use plastic grocery bags and plastic bags wadded up together and tied with rope.  In past years when we gave soccer balls to the children post-op they would get so excited and then ask if they had to give it back or if they could keep it.  Kip, one of our patients last year never let the soccer ball go while he was in his ICU bed recovering.  These children are so precious.

Dr. Mary is explaining to Stanley that this ball is for him to keep. 

Then it was time to take a picture of Stanley... but we couldn't get little Stanley to smile.

There were no smiles from Stanley until we told him to... show us your teeth!

Dr. Mary, Stanley (& his new soccer ball) and me. 

Stanley and Dr. Mike, his cardiologist.

Precious little Stanley.  What are the chances that a patient's doctor would find a contact for cardiac surgery at Tenwek Hospital through my silly little blog, and that he would send a message within 48 hours of our teams departure from the United States?  It's a God-thing for sure!  You just have to believe...