Doctor seeks closer ties between hospitals
Through the generous help of people and institutions at home and abroad, a baby girl will soon receive life saving medical care. Today, one of the doctors responsible for her good fortune returned home for a visit.
Janelle Chanona, Reporting
On Monday, thirteen-month-old Jaesha Daly will travel to Birmingham, Alabama where she will undergo a second surgery to repair her abdominal wall, a procedure necessary because she was born with a condition called gastroschisis.
Dr. Wahib Mena, Neonatologist
“Dr. Baldwin, I’ve seen him done hundreds of surgeries and Jaesha will have a normal belly button after this, he’ll make her one. And you know, that’s the important thing, to get her to be a normal baby.”
Jaesha is the first Belizean baby to benefit from a budding relationship between The Children’s Hospital in Alabama and doctors at the K.H.M.H.
Dr. Wahib Mena
“Through me and the people I work with, to basically beg and ask to do things. And most people want to help especially when it comes to children.”
“The only thing I would like to stress is that you know, this is for people who don’t have a way to pay for it because most of the hospitals, the doctors up there that are interested in. And again, the idea is not to take everything from Belize and take it up there. If a baby has appendicitis, Dr. Coleman and them are very capable of performing those surgeries. But when there are surgeries that can’t be performed because they are very complex or because it requires specialised training, or because there is not the equipment available in Belize, those are the kinds of people that we are looking at to bring.”
According to Dr. Mena, the bond between the hospitals would mean donations of medical supplies and equipment as well as access to education.
Wahib Mena
“We’re forming the basis of establishing a relationship between the Karl Heusner Hospital. And through me, hopefully through the University of Birmingham in Alabama, which is a world renowned institution, and through the hospital that I work to establish definitely an exchange program where doctors, nurses and other health care professionals from there can come down here and get some experience. And then also having some of our doctors and nurses from here going up there and working and getting some experience.”
Reporting for News 5, I am Janelle Chanona.
The family of Jaesha Daly would like to thank Dr. Wahib Mena, the Rotary Club of San Ignacio, American Airlines and everyone who donated time and money or provided assistance in getting Jaesha the treatment she needs.
