Baby girl from Gaza saved by team of Israeli, Palestinian doctors
Lama was diagnosed with a heart defect that results in abnormal blood flow between two of the major arteries connected to the heart, a condition which requires medical intervention.
By ZACHARY KEYSERLama, a six-month-old baby girl from Gaza who underwent lifesaving heart surgery at Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel(photo credit: SACH)
The life of a six-month-old Palestinian baby girl was rescued by the collaborative efforts of Israeli and Palestinian medical staff at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel this past week.Lama, a six-month-old baby girl from Gaza born with a heart defect, had been receiving treatment in Gaza since her diagnosis under the care of Palestinian pediatric cardiologist Dr. Fayez Shakalia.Shakalia received training in these types of medical procedures by the Save a Child's Heart foundation, which brings doctors from the Palestinian territories and developing countries to come to Israel and train with Israeli medical experts. Save a Child's Heart brings children to Israel from all across the world for lifesaving heart surgeries and has treated more than 5,000 children from 62 countries to date.Lama herself, was diagnosed with a heart defect that results in abnormal blood flow between two of the major arteries connected to the heart, a condition which requires medical intervention.Her treatments were progressing smoothly at the local Gaza hospital until a catheterization procedure went awry, requiring Lama's immediate transfer to an Israeli hospital to receive open-heart surgery.Urgent requests were then sent to Israeli authorities allow Lama into Israel, while separate requests were then sent to the Palestinian authorities requesting she be able to leave, accompanied by her mother, to the Wolfson Medical Center for her lifesaving treatment. After an agreement on both sides, Lama was transferred via ambulance through the Erez Crossing and from there driven to the hospital in Holon.“After speaking with Dr Shakalia we understood that Lama needed to be operated as soon as possible,” said Dr Alona Raucher Sternfeld, head of pediatric cardiology at Wolfson. “We have been working with Dr Shakalia and our other partners in Gaza for years, and thanks to this cooperation, more than 2,500 Palestinian children – both from the West Bank and from Gaza – were treated by us throughout the years."Lama underwent the successful open-heart surgery on Tuesday, she is now recovering in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Wolfson Medical Center.“I was very nervous to come here at the beginning, it is my first time in Israel, but everything is perfect now. My baby is saved, and the doctors are taking care of everything”, said Lama's mother following the surgery. Lama will return to Gaza with her mother after she recovers.“This story perfectly describes Israel, a big-hearted country with cutting edge technology and know how. We will continue to practice the Jewish People’s ancient commandment to practice tikun olam, translated literally as ‘healing the world,’” said Canadian-Israeli philanthropist Sylvan Adams, one of the major donors for the Save a Child's Heart foundation.
