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Several children screened for surgery at CHI

May 08, 2009 News

Several children in need of open heart surgery were screened over the Easter Weekend and will soon undergo much needed surgical interventions at the Caribbean Heart Institute (CHI) in the coming weeks.
CHI is currently in possession of a list of paediatric cases which previously could have only been addressed overseas.
According to Head of CHI, Dr Gary Stephens, he has been collaborating with doctors at the Long Island Jewish hospital in New York with regards to the paediatric operations. He disclosed that a surgeon with his team of about 10 medical professionals from the hospital will travel to Guyana to conduct the open heart interventions.
It is anticipated that the first set of paediatric surgeries will be undertaken by September.
And according to Dr Stephens, plans are still on stream to examine the former First Lady’s Kids First Fund list of children who require open heart operations.
“We had that list at some point so we are trying to backtrack and figure out what happened with some of those kids, whether they had surgery or not.” The assistance of the public is necessary to spread the word that open heart surgery is available to suitable candidates, he added.
Over the years many parents have solicited financial assistance for their children who suffer from cardiac complications to travel abroad for heart surgery. But according to Dr Stephens, it is anticipated that the situation will be much appeased with the availability of such a service right here.
However, he expressed some concern about donors, even as he questioned whether there will be sustained support as it relates to the funding of operations.
“I hope that the organisations that usually step up to fund operations overseas will also fund us here.”
Dr Stephens noted that although there is the advantage that family members will be closer to the patient and the operation will cost less, there is still the cost which will include bringing in the medical team.
During the latter part of last year, Dr Stephens had said that plans were apace to have paediatric heart surgery done in Guyana this year.
He had pointed to the fact that the additional and crucial feature had been in the making for the past two years. He had noted, too, that efforts must first be made to ensure that persons are totally comfortable with the current procedures before attempts are made to operate on children, a state Dr Stephens believes the Institute has reached.
He disclosed that CHI is fully equipped with the relevant equipment to facilitate open heart surgeries for children but currently lack the relevant personnel to completely man the operation, thus the need for the collaboration with the Long Island hospital.
“The surgery itself I don’t think is the issue, it is the management. Kids are unique…With adults you can take a little bit more latitude but with kids you can’t do that. Now if you are going to do these complex operations it is good to work as a team, with people who know each other.”
However, he also disclosed that CHI is closer to having its own Paediatric Heart Surgeon, as a doctor is close to completing training at the Sick Kids of Toronto, Canada, which is a premier paediatric cardiac institution.
“She should be wrapping up her two-year study and we anticipate that she will return shortly to give service to both public and private sector. So we will have a full-time cardiologist trained in paediatric cardiology on the ground,” Dr Stephens disclosed.

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