Medical Miracle Alexandro

Immediate Intervention

Beautiful baby Alexandro was born on La Gonâve island last year. It became immediately obvious that he had a medical problem and our team flew him and his very young mom by air ambulance to Mirebalais Hospital on the mainland. While at Mirebalais, Alexandro was diagnosed with Hirschsprung disease (causing him extreme difficulty to pass stool) and we discovered he needed emergency surgery. A visiting American surgeon removed the diseased large intestine and created an ostomy for him. An Ostomy is a surgical procedure that changes the way urine and stool exit the body.  The bodily waste is rerouted from its usual path because of a malfunctioning urinary or digestive system.  For Alexandro the ostomy was a vast improvement,  but would need to be reversed when he was older. 

Caring for Alexandro After Surgery

After discharge from hospital, Alexandro’s mom had  to learn to care for his ostomy using colostomy bags which was a difficult and stressful ordeal for her. With the love and patient support from our doctors, nurse and care staff, Alexandro grew stronger and healthier. 

An Ostomy reversal is highly specialized and unfortunately, the original surgeon at Mirebalais Hospital had returned to the USA. Despite our best efforts, it took many months to find another pediatric surgeon willing and experienced enough to do the required reversal. 

An Opportunity for a Second Surgery Was a Miracle

Alexandro had surgery on August 6th and is now thriving. His internal ‘plumbing’ is working perfectly and like any baby, he will be able to be toilet trained in the coming months. His surgical wounds are healing well and his scars will fade over time. Being so young, he won’t even remember the ordeal he and his mom went through. 

The cost for Alexandro’s surgery, scans, tests and transport was one of the biggest expenses we have had this year; however there is no price we could put on this precious baby’s health. He will now lead a healthy life and we are delighted for him and his mom.

Thank you all for enabling us to say ‘yes’ to his surgery and care leading up to it.