The gift of life continues to give

Around eighty youths visited the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (K.H.M.H.) over the past two days to take advantage of the Rotary Club’s Gift of Life clinic. The program is financed by the Rotary’s signature fundraisers—the annual raffle and play. Today News Five saw the fruits of those fundraising efforts when we visited the clinic and spoke to patients who successfully underwent heart surgery and are now living full and productive lives. Delahnie Bain has the story.

Delahnie Bain, Reporting

For years the Rotary Club of Belize has offered life saving surgery for young heart patients through its Gift of Life Program. At no cost to the patients, the children are taken care of by volunteer doctors from abroad, who diagnose and determine what treatment is needed. Today was the end of the program’s second two day clinic for this year.

Yvette Burkes, President, Rotary Club of Belize

yvette burks

“We’re running our semi-annual clinic, which as you know it is well over a decade since our Rotary Club has been hosting clinics in Belize. Every six months we see patients from the entire country who the doctors may have identified some symptoms that they have some sort of heart problem. We see patients, follow up, new patients; whatever and decided what the situation is and of course if they need surgery then we make the arrangements to take care of the problem.”

One success story is Omar Wade, who at age nine, learned of his heart defect. Three years later, Omar underwent Surgery through the gift of life program.

rhonda gomez

Rhonda Gomez, Mother of Gift of Life Patient

“It was bad because, well how I know dat ih get sick, I si dat ih used to lay down lot and ih neva used to eat and dehn thing and I get up one day and I seh you know what I have to ker my son dah hospital. so as I bring he dah di hospital dehn admit ah right away fi wah whole month and Doctor Grinage call me wah day and tell me dat ih have enlarged heart and dat ih have to get wah surgery done.”

Omar Wade, Gift of Life Patient

“I have wah enlarged heart and rheumatic fever.”

Delahnie Bain

“And what kind of problems did that cause for you?”

Omar wade

omar wade

“Mi heart mi overgrown and wah valve mi di leak and dehn change it. I feel better now cause when I mi younger I mi always di get sick. Now ah feel betta since dehn put in di valve.”

Delahnie Bain

“What are some of the things that you couldn’t do before that you can do now?”

Omar Wade

“First ah couldn’t play ball, I couldn’t walk bout, I lone stay inna house and thing. But I deh round now and I play ball. I just want seh keep up di good work and continue to help people like how dehn help me.”

We also met Sheresa Perez, who was treated four years ago for a condition called Supraventricular tachycardia or SVT.

sheresa perez

Sheresa Perez, Gift of Life Patient

“I had what we call SVT. It’s a heart problem where my pulse would go to approximately two hundred and thirty beats per minute, which is obviously not normal and it would have different side effects and they told me that if I didn’t have it fixed or if I didn’t have it under control, it would eventually kill me. So my cardiologist told me about the program and that’s where I went to see Ms. Yvette and I came to one of the normal clinics and that’s where I got selected to go for the surgery. When the pulse gets too high, the veins here become very sensitive, I’d be shaky, it would affect my pressure so I would faint or I would vomit and with the pressure being so low it could damage my organs eventually so it was causing a lot of problems.”

Omar and Sheresa’s are singular representations of the cumulative success the program has seen over the years.

Yvette Burkes

“We have really phenomenal results and that is so good. There are a few children that have a little residual something that we’ll need to treat in the future but that’s the point of being in the program. Once you’re in it, you’re in it. Once you’re accepted, you’re accepted and we’ll see you through.”

Delahnie Bain for News Five.