Today Asmeen returned to Sheba Hospital for a urine test today.
Although it took a while to get the necessary sample, the work was soon over, and Asmeen and her mother got to spend the rest of the day visiting our other Kurdish mothers in the hospital. They had a blessed time of encouragement together.
Asmeen will return to the hospital on Sunday to consult with the necessary doctor for her surgery. We pray for an early date!
At Sheba Medical today, Asmeen had her long-awaited CEVUS exam–five months awaited, in fact!
Asmeen was discharged from Sheba Hospital back to our house in Ashdod on the 25th of October in good condition. She’s not quite used to the hole in her throat being closed, but she remains her amiable self.
Right now we’re trying to speed up her kidney examination, currently booked for the 22nd of this month. We pray we’ll be successful.
Asmeen’s mother is a dear friend of mine. Ever since meeting her in 2021, we have stayed in close contact. It has been a blessing seeing her family grow. It brings me joy to think about all the photos and videos she sent me over the last few years – seeing Asmeen explore the outdoors, learn how to stand up on her own, how she progressed to breathing independently without ventilator support for the last nine months. With multiple complexities to her health including heart, lung, and kidney issues, it’s amazing to see her transform into a beautiful 3-year old. Asmeen’s mother also bravely traveled to Israel, only 18 days after delivering Asmeen’s little sister. إيناس (Asmeen’s sister) has a joyful smile and it has been encouraging to see photos of her growth.
I am saddened for her knowing that she dearly misses her daughter, but thankful that she is here as she is so knowledgeable of Asmeen of her health. Asmeen’s mother is not afraid of advocating for her care and ensuring that Asmeen is receiving the best care. They have been in Israel for more than a year, if you consider both trips. Asmeen’s mom has not only learned a vast amount of medical knowledge but also language skills as well (not only multiple dialects of Kurdish but also Arabic, English, and even Hebrew). She was a blessing in connecting me with the other mothers there, and you could easily tell that she cared about them.
At last, today was her long awaited surgery and thankfully the procedure was successful. She took her time in waking up from the anesthesia, but almost immediately woke up when we played Gorani children’s songs on her beloved phone. She is currently recovering with supplemental oxygen support in the ICU which is in a downstairs car garage for safety concerns. We hope to welcome her to our home soon.
Next week she will also have a pediatric contrast-enhanced voiding urosonography to examine her urinary bladder and tract to help detail her kidney plan of care. We are thankful that it was able to be scheduled quickly.
Today I visited Sheba Hospital and went to visit Asmeen and her mother whilst there.
Her mum says Asmeen is good today but she is not so everyday. You can see Asmeen was sleeping peacefully when I went to her room. The doctor would like to do some genetic tests.
We continue to lift up Asmeen in our prayers.
Asmeen was discharged from Sheba Hospital two days ago. Her mother was happy to return to our community home, although she would have liked it if there was more progress in Asmeen’s treatment.
Asmeen still needs all the appointments for different surgeries and kidney tests. It takes a long time, and it will all take a long time until Asmeen is ready to go back to Kurdistan.
For now, Asmeen is taking new medications against epileptic episodes. Hopefully this will keep her stable. We want to ask for your prayer for openings in hospital schedule, so Asmeen can have her surgeries. And of course, prayer for Asmeen’s health.
Asmeen is doing better today. She was playing a game with the nurses. Every time they come in, Asmeen pretends to be asleep, so they will leave her alone. Unfortunately for her the nurses know better than that, and they will still do their work. Asmeen had several tests, like a urinal test, an ECG, an EEG and today the neurologist saw her. She is receiving antibiotics, because her urinal test gave some sign of infection. Although she doesn’t have a UTI. Please keep praying for Asmeen and for answers for her condition, so the doctors can treat it.
Asmeen is doing well enough to be discharged from Sheba Hospital today! As a result of the seizure, she will take more medication, that should prevent it from occurring again. Asmeen also saw an ENT doctor who established that she can have the surgery to close the hole in her throat. This is great news. This surgery, plus a kidney test, will be scheduled. For now, Asmeen and her mom will be with us in Ashdod, which is a joy.
Since Asmeen was hospitalized at Sheba Medical Center, she endured several tests: EEG, x-ray, blood tests, etc. Her mother is patiently waiting at Asmeen’s side. Until now there are no results from the tests, but hopefully next week we will get answers about Asmeen’s situation.
On Sunday she will see an ENT doctor. He will take a look at Asmeen’s tracheostomy site. She might be a candidate for tracheostomy closure. Please keep praying for Asmeen.
It was a peaceful morning at the Shevet house, when I received a phone call from Asmeen’s mother crying for help. Coworker Bria ran over and found Asmeen laying on the couch, completely white and unresponsive. She called an ambulance and they brought Asmeen to the nearest hospital in Ashdod, called Assuta Hospital.
In the meantime, Asmeen came back to her normal self in the hospital where doctors suspect Asmeen probably had a seizure.
At Sheba, the doctors chose to admit Asmeen in order to keep her under observation. She will get a higher dose of the medication against seizures and the doctors want to find out if her heart causes problems for her brain activity. Maybe this hospitalization will help Asmeen’s process in Israel, to get the treatment she came for. Please pray for Asmeen.
After last week’s kidney ultrasound, Asmeen had a quick consultation with the nephrologist at Sheba Hospital this morning. It seems from the ultrasound that she may have an obstruction in the ureter than drains her right kidney. The doctor wants her to have a kidney mapping scan so he can get a better idea of what exactly is happening and how it affects her kidney function. It usually takes quite a bit of time to get an appointment for this scan at Sheba, but the doctor’s secretary is working hard to get an appointment as soon as possible. We’re so grateful for both of them for their hard work for Asmeen.
Asmeen was pretty content for the short waiting time as long as she could be upside-down, which she much prefers to sitting upright.
After the appointment, we went back to our house in Ashdod, where she and another Kurdish child named Mariya got to know each other a little better.
We took Asmeen to Sheba Hospital today for an ultrasound checkup. The nurse took a look at her kidney and said that things look good. After that he brought in the doctor to look at her while her mother waited patiently. The doctor took another look and confirmed that things look good.
Next week Asmeen will see the nephrologist. The nephrologist will come up with a treatment plan for Asmeen.
Asmeen had her first appointment at Sheba hospital for this time in Israel. It was just a quick appointment with the nephrologist, who reviewed her reports from Kurdistan and asked us to take her for a kidney ultrasound so he can get a better idea of her situation. We’re used to working with the cardiology department, so I’ve been a bit nervous about navigating the nephrology clinic for the first time. But it turns out there’s nothing to worry about — the head doctor and his secretary are going above and beyond for Asmeen, even scheduling all her appointments as quickly as possible. When the doctor found out Asmeen is from Kurdistan, he said “We love the Kurds! I’ll do my very best for her.” Asmeen will have her ultrasound on Thursday and then return early next week to see the nephrologist again.
Asmeen has returned to Israel after two years of being at home in Kurdistan. Asmeen was in Israel before, as you can read in the blogs below. She had a long process of recovery after her heart surgery, which ended in receiving a tracheostomy. She left Israel after nine months, escorted by two of Shevet’s gracious volunteers.
Asmeen has returned now because of her kidney problems and for the removal of her tracheostomy. Her mother is again with her and she is a lovely woman. She went back to Kurdistan three days after I arrived in Israel as a volunteer. She is talking about the previous volunteers that were here. She loves them all so much, and I can imagine that they loved Asmeen’s mother a lot as well.
Now that Asmeen has arrived in Kurdistan, the plan is for her to stay in the PICU for around two weeks. Her family will need to prepare their home with the necessary supplies to care for her in a home setting. Asmeen’s mother is very competent. She knows all of Asmeen’s little intricacies and loves her dearly. Thankfully, she was trained with this specific ventilator that she has now for one and a half months at Alyn Rehabilitation Hospital, so she is comfortable with the machine. It also has 16 hours of battery life to deal with the frequent power outages in Kurdistan.
Asmeen was admitted and transferred over to her new bed in the PICU. The doctor invited us to share breakfast with Asmeen’s mother. We are thankful for his kindness.
After leaving Asmeen in the able hands of the Kurdish PICU, we were invited to Asmeen’s family home for a Kurdish meal. Her siblings were so excited that Asmeen and mom were finally home. Her family prepared new clothes for her, as she had outgrown all her clothes in Kurdistan. We were so blessed to rejoice together with her family.
While in Israel, Asmeen’s mother always encouraged the other Kurdish mothers during the eight months of her daughter’s hospitalization. She would say, “desti xwha,” which means everything is in the “hands of God.”
This evening co-workers Colin and Nate are escorting Asmeen and her mother from Sheba hospital to Ben Gurion airport where they will then fly to Iraq with Asmeen and her mother, with one layover in between.
I met Asmeen in Janurary. Back then she was so little. Now, eight months later, she looks like a toddler.
Her mother dressed her with a special dress for traveling. and in preparation for seeing her father after all these months.
No one imagined she would be here for this much time, she and her mother only stayed in Jaffa for one night and then every one of the following nights for them has been spent in one or another hospitals.
We’ve often wrote of two things pertaining to Asmeen, the complex logistics of transporting her with mechanical ventilation attached to her tracheostomy for one, and also the incredible endurance and patience of her mother. For both of these monumental things, we have seen God at work. He has worked through various people including one doctor, Daphne, who has her own medical transport company in Israel and helped Colin and Nate plan everything. This wouldn’t have been possible without them all. As the night comes, with two flights and a layover in between, as well as two ambulance rides, please pray for them as they care for Asmeen.
As for the strength of Asmeen’s mother, it is always easy to give comfort to others when we ourselves are not suffering, but it is infinitely more costly to provide comfort for others when we ourselves are in pain at that moment. Asmeen’s mother, in the midst of her own nine month trial, has without fail, given a great deal of love, encouragement, and solace to other Kurdish families in the midst of their crises.
I will always remember her hugs, she gave the best of those; especially at trying times, she strengthened me and my co-workers Sabrina and Georgia.
And how much the Sheba hospital ICU staff loved Asmeen! How has this little baby that I met in January, who has gone through so, so much, how has she grown into quite a sassy and lovely little girl?
Please pray for the rest of Asmeen’s life. We pray that one day In the future, she would be able to breathe without the ventilator and have the tracheostomy closed. Amen. May it be so.
Please pray.
Yesterday evening I was doing an admission to Sheba hospital for one of our children to its 6th floor. When I went into the ICU, there was a lovely surprise awaiting me. It was the lovely mother of Asmeen greeting me with her beautiful smile. She and little Asmeen are back at Sheba Medical Center since yesterday.
I was so happy to see them because it has been a while since we’ve saw each other. They have been in Alyn Rehabilitation hospital in Jerusalem. It was even a longer time since I’ve seen Asmeen, as in Alyn hospital I wasn’t allowed to see her.
So it was lovely to see her today, and I can see that she has grown a lot. She was readily reacting to noises and her eye contact has improved which is also an improvement.
Asmeen’s mother is a great woman with a beautiful heart. She is always comforting the mothers and encouraging them. For example, she did this yesterday evening as she showed one of our new mothers how to make her bed, where the bed sheets are kept, and the floor kitchen and so on. It is a privilege to have her back, as she is such a lovely woman.
Also today she comforted some other mothers. We call her “the Queen of the ICU” and it is really nice that they all comfort each other right from the beginning. Please pray that she may continue in her beautiful patience, she has been here for such a long time with little Asmeen and there seems to be no end to it.
A few weeks ago the Alyn Rehabilitation Hospital in Jerusalem allowed the lovely mother of Asmeen to have a a little bit of rest for one day and take some rest for herself while her little Asmeen is admitted there.
I took her to our Jerusalem Guest house where some of our other Kurdish families have been for some time. She was very happy to see all of them and enjoyed they their time together. Afterwards, she was able go to the old city, visit the Mosque and get some shopping in. It’s the first time she’s been able to go outside of the hospital for about four months!
She has now returned to the hospital so today, co-worker Margarita and I visited Asmeen’s mother there. Even though she is a very strong and lovely woman, she is struggling so she cried during our visit. We told her we know that this whole time must be very difficult for her and she agreed and said she also misses her husband back in Kurdistan. We tried to encourage her that everything is in God’s hands and that we can and should trust in him. That calmed her down. She said she knows this to be true and is thankful for it.
She is very tired, but she needs to continue to wait for the Lord and who knows how long? So please pray for new strength and patience for this lovely woman and her cute Asmeen, for each new day.
The weather was beautiful. The sun was shining and it was lovely to sit and chat with her despite our language differences. It was a mix of Kurdish, English and Arabic. She told me with tears in her eyes that she is very tired from being in the hospital for such a long time with her little daughter now. They are here now four months. I tried to comfort her with a hug and I hope I gave her the feeling that I understood the difficulty in this. She seems a bit like she is about to give up hope on her lovely daughter, but I told her she should try to continue to have hope for a good recovery for her and even though it is difficult now to wait so long, the wait will be worth it in the end.
Nevertheless, Asmeen’s mother is looking forward to having a little bit of rest this coming Sunday or Monday. She would like to see a bit of Jerusalem. The Kurdish families that are with us at the moment in our Jerusalem guesthouse would go with her, maybe even visit the Mosque to pray – a very important thing for Asmeen’s mom.
Please join me in prayer that this will be possible, and that it gives her new strength and patience even though it is still very difficult.
I’m happy that one of the Kurdish mother’s could join me for the visit and talk for a while with Asmeen’s mother. I hope this encouraged her since she had been such an encouragement for so many other families she had met at Sheba hospital in her time there. We really miss them at Sheba because it was much easier to visit her there since hospital staff and personnel know us, but still it is a blessing that she can be in this hospital now for Asmeen’s sake.
Asmeen will be travelling by ambulance tomorrow, as of course, she cannot be removed from the mechanical ventilator. Please pray for Asmeen’s recovery, and her mother’s hopes, that this would all go ahead tomorrow as planned and that the outcome would be successful. God willing.
As we heard again from one of the doctors today, the hospital in Jerusalem is the best place in all of Israel for children like Asmeen, specialising in weaning their patients off ventilators. On the other hand, the lack of time frame is discouraging, and it takes so much strength for Asmeen’s mum to aim her hope into so many unknowns. As she always says, Asmeen is not in her hands, or our hands, or the doctors’ hands, but in the hands of God.
Certainly, when Asmeen’s tracheostomy tube came out of the hole in her neck during our visit this morning, her mother did not act like a lady who had given up on her daughter’s chance of life. She ran out of the room shouting for a doctor or nurse to come, as the alarms on Asmeen’s machines starting ringing out to alert us that Asmeen was in a dangerous situation. The expert care of the nurse ensured that this incident was over in a matter of seconds, but even during this short time, we saw her oxygen level plummet.
Asmeen’s mother agreed that because it is the Jewish holiday of Pesach this week, there are not so many doctors at the hospital. So we will wait until next week before we can really discuss Asmeen’s situation with them. She was hopeful for this discussion to be on Sunday, but I told her that it will then be our Christian holiday, where we are celebrating “new life” (my limited Kurdish skills…!), and I promised that we will hope and pray for this new life for Asmeen.
Please remember this long-suffering and sweet family in prayer; that God will surround and uplift the mother and renew her hope! We are also hoping and praying for healing for Asmeen, to be weaned from the ventilator.
Asmeen’s mother was outside the Sheba hospital pediatric ICU when I saw her, and she asked if I could come in to see Asmeen. It always strikes me when I see Asmeen awake, that she is so beautiful. She was moving around a lot, and kicking off her blankets; her mother commented on this with delight. She asked if there was any news for Asmeen, and my response was the same as before, that we are waiting for a bed to open up in the hospital in Jerusalem for her.
Please pray for this to happen or for ways in which we could help move things along for Asmeen. Her mum saw all of the Kurdish New Year celebrations happening this weekend, and instead of a tone of bitterness that she wasn’t there, she took joy in describing the Newroz festivities that she has attended before and hopes to go to again someday.
Asmeen’s mother has been the epitome of patient as she continues to wait for a space in the hospital in Jerusalem which specializes in tracheostomies. That hospitalo said they will contact Sheba hospital when there is a bed available for Asmee.
Please pray this will be soon so that Asmeen can start working on being taken off mechanical ventilation. Asmeen has been in the hospital for three months now, and especially in times of waiting, her mum has shown incredible endurance.
Appreciate your prayers for these two.
“What is this new machine?” This is one of the first questions Asmeen’s mum asked me. She was referring to the wires attached to various points around Asmeen’s head. We were in Sheba Hospital.
In the past 24 hours, Asmeen has had a seizure, and so these wires are to monitor her brain activity. The cause of the seizure is still unknown. An ultrasound was done, but nothing was found that would be the reason for a seizure.
It is beyond difficult for Asmeen’s mother to see her daughter not getting better, and now having this new problem with her brain.
Please pray for them both.
Today co- worker Sabrina and I visited our little girl Asmeen at Sheba Medical Centre. It was so nice to see her peacefully resting on the bed. She received a beautiful toy which also makes music. She likes to observe it and stay quiet.
Our cute Asmeen is still on a breathing machine and doctors don’t know when they will be free to discontinue with it. She is so long already with breathing help, and has to stay in the Pediatric ICU because of it. The nice nurse whom we asked today if there will be a new treatment plan, could not give us any information. For Asmeen’s mother, it is also difficult to cope with the unknown.
Today, Asmeen had a fever, but thank God, the medical staff had it on a string, and now Asmeen feels better, the fever is down. We hope for improvement from our little girl in everything very soon.
Please keep praying with us for clarity in this situation for Asmeen and also for strength for her lovely mother. Thank you so much for your support!
Asmeen’s mum was visited by some of the other Kurdish mothers, now at the end of their journey here in Israel, coming to encourage her and wish her well.
The tracheostomy procedure did not take too long, perhaps around two hours. Asmeen’s mother handled the discussions with competence, now she is getting used to speaking Arabic and English. I was so proud of her! It was so great to be able to sit with her during the waiting time, and speak with her about many things, especially her life and family in Kurdistan. She is holding up well in the hospital after so long here.
Thankfully the procedure went well. Asmeen, with her tracheostomy procedure completed, was transported back to the Pediatric ICU.
When I went to visit our little Asmeen and her lovely mother at Sheba Medical Center today, she told me that Asmeen is extubated. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and wasn’t even sure if I understood her correctly from the context because she told me in Kurdish and with her hands.
I asked her if she would take a picture of Asmeen for me since we’re not allowed to go into their rooms in the Pediatric ICU. I was so thankful and happy when I saw the picture of an extubated Asmeen. Her lovely mother told me that she is sleeping a lot and sleeping well. By extension, this means Asmeen’s mother also sleeps well.
Every time I visit this mother, she is happy to see me and is always asking how all the others families at our community house are doing. She is an extremely friendly woman, but she is tired and worried about staying in the hospital for so long.
Let’s comfort her and our lovely Asmeen in prayers, that they can leave the hospital really soon.
I met Asmeen’s mother in the Pediatric ICU of Sheba Hospital today. She was pleased to see me, and to tell me that her lovely daughter had her surgery this morning! What a surprise!
Sadly, I could not to speak with a doctor or a nurse to get more information. But the surgery was not a long time and when I met the mother, small Asmeen was already in her room again at the ICU on the sixth floor. And she did pretty well!
Last week the doctors told us they want to make an operation on her diaphragm to make more room for the lungs. We pray that the surgery will help to improve our lovely Asmeen!
Thank you also for your prayers!
Sweet Asmeen is awake and looking beautiful today! We saw her mother with the other Kurdish mothers outside the Sheba Medical Center Pediatric ICU for some time together today.
Thank God for restoring Asmeen’s mother’s peace again. I was so happy to receive this video from her of Asmeen! I realized that despite them being in Israel for a month now, I have hardly seen Asmeen, as she has spent almost the entire time in hospital and we now cannot visit her in their room.
Asmeen is scheduled for a surgery on Sunday to help improve lung expantion in her chest space. After this, there is a new hope that Asmeen can breathe on her own, and perhaps could be then extubated.
Thank you for your continued prayer for this little one.
Asmeen had a CT scan today, and we hope to find out the results of this later in the week.
Our little Asmeen is still at the Pediatric Intenstive Cardiac Care Unit at Sheba Medical Centre. Her mother met me there. She looks rested and she was happy to have a visit.
Asmeen is doing well. Her physical condition is stable and yesterday, she was extubated. But she was not quite able to breathe independently as yet, so our sweet girl had to be intubated again.
She is in Gods hands, and He cares for this blessed child!
Asmeen’s heart surgery was planned for last Sunday at Sheba Medical Center, but was re-scheduled for today. Co-worker Carina and I went to the hospital to spend the waiting time with Asmeen’s mother. While Asmeen was in surgery, we found her mom to be very upset. When she saw us, she fell crying into my arms. But after a while she calmed down a bit and stopped crying.
Beautiful Asmeen was wide awake when I visited her at Sheba Medical today. I was surprised at how tiny and delicate she is and how little space she took up in the crib, but her big eyes were taking in the room around her.
After many tests, she is on the schedule to receive surgery on Sunday! Her mum was excited about this news but took it with steadiness. Please pray for this lovely family as it is the first surgery of Asmeen’s young life and her mother’s first experience of major surgery for her child.
Asmeen and her mum travelled with four other Kurdish families, arriving in Israel last night. It was a long day, and they were both tired when they arrived. Asmeen is the only child of her mother, and is three months old. She has a diagnosis of Persistent Truncus Arteriosus, which means that her oxygen level is very low. Asmeen will see the doctor on Wednesday to make a full assessment of their condition. She and mum must stay in quarantine with all the other Kurdish families for two weeks, so please pray for an easy settling-in period for them.
Asmeen is a year old child from Kurdistan, diagnosed with Persistent Truncus Arteriosus
Asmeen does not yet have a local leader to advocate for prayer and financial support for his surgery.
As of right now, Asmeen still needs $6925 toward surgery and related expenses.