This past weekend we had a really nice farewell party for miraculous Dina, as Dina is finally ready to go back to Kurdistan. The mothers Dina’s mother was in a happy mood and wanted to do our ‘make-up’ which is a very Kurdish type of make-up.
Dina’s mother said she is thankful for the hospital and that she could come to Israel, and that Dina is in a much better condition now than when she came. She said she is very keen to get home now as she has other children waiting there for her.
I was thinking about the last weeks in which Dina’s mother was very eager to return home and it wasn’t a easy time with her really. But when I was thinking and reflecting about our overall time with her, I’m thankful that we got the chance to know each other and to spend days of joy together. I remember the days I visited Dina in her hospital room. Often Dina’s mother would pull out a small picnic and make us sit on a blanket on the floor. I felt always welcome and she knew how to make the best out of the situation she and Dina were in.
But I’m also thankful for the difficult times and days with Dina’s mother because these are the times when God is changing our hearts and minds for the good and he is forming us. If there weren’t moments like this, we wouldn’t grow in our faith. So I’m thankful for the whole time, even though it takes a lot of strength.
I hope and pray that God also changes the heart of Dina’s mother.
Today, co-worker Bria and I brought Dina and Mohammed to the airport together with co-workers Colin and Nate (in above photo far right), their medical escorts.
Please pray for safe travels. Thank God that Dina and Dina’s mom can be reunited with their family soon.
Today at Sheba hospital was the much anticipated echo-cardiogram for Dina. In the words of her cardiologist, Dina is a miracle after surviving a deadly heart infection which ruptured her aorta. But today, the doctor said that this is the best condition she has seen Dina in so far, and since she will not need another surgery for the near future or possibly ever, her treatment here is done.
Her mother was very appreciative of all the work accomplished on her daughter’s behalf, and she understands how miraculous it is her daughter is still alive. It has not been easy, but today was joyful as Dina’s condition has improved over these months and can now go back to Kurdistan where she will report to a local hospital as the doctors at Sheba recommended.
Please be praying for Dina, she was very sick to begin with, but a complication that occurred after her third surgery was the onset of small seizures, which she is on medication for. She will be flying back to Kurdistan with Nate and Colin as medical escorts.
As the day wrapped up, some of the Sheba clowns came with a portable Sukkah on wheels and some party music to help celebrate Sukkot, the week long biblical holiday which is also known as the Festival of Booths. It was a lot of fun taking pictures with everyone and a nice note to end Dina’s last trip to Sheba hospital on, the place where she found extraordinary healing.
On the recommendation of the Sheba hospital doctors who discharged Dina, we are to bring Dina to the emergency room in the event that she has a seizure. She is currently on two medications to help with this possible condition.
Today, in the afternoon, as I was going through Dina’ medications with her mum, Dina went very rigid and her face turned blue. For a few seconds, she was completely frozen. Her mother said that this was one of her seizures; it has been complicated for the past few weeks with trying to care for Dina at first in the hospital, and now at our community house, because Dina’s mother is insistent on returning to Kurdistan, so she was reluctant at first to go to the hospital at all.
She finally agreed to go on the condition that Dina won’t be admitted. Admission to the hospital is what the doctors recommended as soon as we got there, but they understood that she would not consent. The neurologist added a new medication to help control the seizures. So please be praying for little Dina. Please also be praying for Dina’s mother as well.
After many hours in an isolation room and all the morning at the house together, we got home from the hospital at 11:30 at night, brought Dina her medicine, made her milk, and tried to make sure Dina’s mother ate something. I needed to go sit outside our house for a few minutes for some time.
As I sat there, a small phrase came to mind: remember why you came here. Before I knew any Kurdish and could barely communicate in Arabic, before I considered the staff at Sheba my friends and knew the hospital well, before all of this, I came here because of something, because of someone. I came for love. I believed that Jesus on the cross is the ultimate expression of love, and somehow I knew that meant for me that I needed to come to serve at Shevet. Dina’s mother has been through a lot, and as I think we don’t really get to choose the parts of ourselves that we lose along the way in grief, even if it’s not death but other circumstances that cause the loss of something in our lives, we all want to do what is right but can lose our footing. In this difficult case, please pray for all of us here at Shevet to choose kindness, gentleness, compassion, and understanding, especially for Dina’s mother. Pray that she will choose what is right by Dina despite her knowing well the austere and lonely offices that love demands.
And let’s remember especially little Dina, whom the doctors and nurses have worked so hard for, that she is taken care of properly and given a future and a hope.
Today, after many struggles with Dina’s mom, they were discharged to our community house in Jaffa, the feelings involved in this discharge were mixed on the part of the doctors. Dr. Tirosh would have preferred to keep Dina at the hospital, but Dina’s mom was not being cooperative and was not willing to stay.
Since Dina is relatively well, the doctors agreed to send Dina home in the hopes that Dina’s mother would find a time of rest and that she was able to continue to care for Dina for some time more, until she is well enough to return to Kurdistan.
Please join us in prayer for this tired mom so that God can bring some new strengths and joy to her while she is at home with us and that the peace of the Lord can come upon her! For Dina, that she will be improving and healthy during her stay here in Jaffa, so they won’t need to go back to the hospital.
Dina finished her course of antibiotics at the end of last week, which was treating endocarditis. She is continuing to feed on an NG tube, which the doctors say is best for her on a long-term basis.
Dina’s mother learnt how to work with the NG tube and pump feeds today, to help her get ready for getting home to Kurdistan.
Her mother’s heart is really set on going home, but of course the doctors want to be thorough in their care for Dina, remembering that she is in a relatively fragile condition. Overall though, she is looking very lovely, especially noticeable is her weight gain.
Please pray over this situation, as Dina and her mother wait for her to improve.
Dina is being closely monitored by Sheba hospital in these past days to try to keep her progressing slowly. The milk she is receiving from a feeding tube has slightly increased and she is receiving a new medication to treat seizures which have recently started.
When we visit Dina, often we’ll ask her mother if she has a question for the doctor that we could translate for her. Usually she ends up telling us exactly what each medication is and seems very well informed. One of the nurses said that Dina’s mother knows her best; she is constantly with Dina, and notices every small detail and difference in her daughter.
I find myself really missing these two at our house; please continue to pray for them.
It was so lovely to be greeted by Dina’s happy mother today as I visited her at Sheba hospital. She is a very hospitable lady and greets many people, without a care that they don’t speak the same language, wishing their children healing.
She is coping well with these weeks in the hospital. Despite being sad to think of Dina having to undergo so many surgeries, Dina’s mother is able to see the benefit of Dina having this PIC line inserted, and wants only the best for her daughter, as she needs this tool to finish a long course of IV antibiotics.
Please pray for little Dina’s recovery, and thank God as he continues to give her mother strength, joy and peace.
Dina is recovering in the pediatric cardiac ICU at Sheba hospital. She is scheduled for a PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) line insertion tomorrow, which will serve as an intravenous access for her for a longer period of time.
Dina’s mom pointed out all the bruising and marks from her previous IV lines and also from the surgery, so we hope that this PICC line will be very beneficial for her.
I met Dina just as she was returning from a CT scan of her heart. Her mother spoke about how she was disheartened that because of the bacterial infection in her heart, little Dina has required three surgeries so far for her heart.
Dina’s mother pointed out the oxygen tubing, nasogastric tubing, and also the tubing connected to two chest drains. She spoke of how weak Dina was now.
However, we hope that Dina’s mother can see past all the tubing and the difficulties Dina is facing, and look ahead in hope for her recovery. As co-worker Sabrina mentioned in the previous blog, we hope that Dina continues to recover “step by step.”
Please continue to pray for strength for both Dina and her mother, both are very tired.
Little Dina is doing a bit better and recovering slowly, step by step. She still has a way of recovery to go.
I remember her crying at our community home and when I look at that picture, it’s very sad and I miss her little cry. But I know that God knows everything and has his perfect plan for the precious little life of Dina.
Please join me in prayer for this cute girl to recover well. Dina’s mother is coping well in the whole situation. She says she knows her beloved daughter is not in the best condition, but she keeps trusting God and the medical staff at Sheba hospital. It’s a beautiful attitude and nice to see.
Please pray for Dina’s mother’s ongoing trust, patience and strength.
Yesterday, co-worker Georgia received a call from Sheba hospital that Dina was very unwell, requiring resuscitation and emergency surgical intervention due to bleeding most likely caused by the infection in her heart that she has been battling.
Co-worker Sabrina and I traveled to the hospital in the evening to spend time with Dina’s mother. When we arrived to the hospital, we found her in the company of two other mothers from Kurdistan. We shared a lovely meal and lovely time together as we waited for the surgery to end.
It was so wonderful to see how the families care for each other in the hospital setting and also to see the medical staff diligently care for these children. The surgery was almost six hours in total and this extended from late Saturday night to early Sunday morning.
Dina’s mom was so strong, she kept on saying that the doctors here are wonderful and she is trusting that Dina is in the care of good doctors. This is Dina’s third surgery. The surgeons were able to stop the bleeding. They explained that she is still very weak. We pray that Dina will be able to recover with strength from the Lord.
Dina is now in the intermediate department of the Pediatric ICU at Sheba hospital. We explained to Dina’s mother that although Dina was moved from the ICU to the intermediate department of the ICU, and although this is a reflection of Dina’s graduating to a better condition, it’s still considered a part of the ICU.
We hope this week Dina will receive a special type of canula that will consistently feed antibiotics to her system for the next six weeks, as the infection from her heart is still being treated.
The lovely Dina is extubated which is good, but she is still on a lot of oxygen support because her oxygen is getting quite low without it.
A few days ago, her doctors did some tests to see how she is doing. When I went to Sheba hospital today to visit Dina and her mother, I asked the doctor about the results of the tests. He said they look good and that she is doing better overall.
Dina’s mother was happy to hear this news as that is the only thing she and also we are hoping for on behalf of Dina, to get better and recover quickly. It looks like Dina’s infection is also under control now.
Please continue to pray for this lovely girl and her mother whom we both miss a lot back at our community home. However, we know that God is with them and he cares for his beloved children. In him we trust.
Dina’s mother said she spent the night holding Dina’s hand and kissing her in case this was their last time together. This morning before her surgery, one of the doctors reiterated the risk that she might not even make it through the operation, which is to replace the work of the first operation and by doing so, to remove and control the infection in her heart which has spread to her blood.
Always it is difficult to have your child go into surgery, but infinitely more so when the doctors issue a grave warning about the danger involved in the procedure. Everything about Dina’s surgery communicated by the doctor, and by her demeanor and behavior, conveyed that Dina’s mother understood the severity of the situation. She had had an earlier conversation with the doctor yesterday, translated through co-worker Julio.
Throughout the seven hours she waited for her daughter, Dina’s mum was often praying or looking at pictures of Dina or video-chatting with her family back in Kurdistan. Towards the end of the seven hours, the doctor who performed the echo in the OR earlier, spoke to Dina’s mother and before anyone could translate, Dina’s mother could tell the news was good and broke into a smile, happy tears, and proceeded to hug the cardiologist.
The surgery had been difficult, but the results of the repair look very good, but especially in the next few days, there is still high risk for Dina as they watch how her body responds and also to determine whether or not the infection is fully controlled.
Right on cue, some of our friends, other Kurdish mothers, showed up to share in Dina’s mother’s relief that Dina had survived the surgery. It felt like many times now, we sit in the same spot waiting for whatever news may come, but whether good or bad, we face it together.
So please join with us in praying for beautiful Dina.
I went to Sheba hospital today to visit little Dina and her lovely mother. We miss them both a lot in our community home in Jaffa.
Dina’s doctors said that Dina will have a surgery tomorrow because of the results of a blood test indicating Dina is dealing with a vegetation. They also have to replace the VSD patch and maybe they have to switch the valves if they are very damaged.
Dina’s mother is very worried about this, because the doctor said the surgery will be a high-risk surgery for little Dina and there is a possibility that she might die.
But in all of thi,s we can and we want to trust in the Lord as he is the best doctor and knows everything about Dina and loves her. Please pray His guidance over the doctors tomorrow during this difficult surgery; God give them wisdom and strength.
Please also pray for Dina’s lovely mother during this difficult time, to trust that God knows what is best for Dina’s little life.
Dina was brought into the ICU at Sheba hospital and reintubated yesterday evening. She had appeared to be recovering well, but then she developed a high fever. She has signs of infection, for which the doctors need to wait for some days to see what happens with the blood cultures.
It’s also possible that one of the valves in her heart is not working well. All in all, she is stable, but not very well. The doctors need more time to see the outcome of her assessments and the development of her condition, but it is possible that she may need another surgery.
Her mother is quite worried, especially to see Dina looking so tired and weak, especially after it had appeared that Dina was recovering well.
After her surgery at Sheba hospital yesterday, Dina was extubated. Today, she was moving around quite a lot, that was really nice to see.
Now there is a question if and how she will feed, and this will be assessed in the coming days. Her mother as always, is amazing. She speaks just Kurdish which can be difficult in the hospital, but she is very intuitive in understanding her daughter’s health. She asked me to thank all the doctors and nurses for what they are doing for Dina, which was really kind of her to express this gratitude.
Dina went into surgery in Sheba Medical center at about 8 am to close the VSD. The process took around five hours. Dina’s mother handled the waiting time with strength and a tender heart towards Dina. Her attitude throughout the whole day was that God knows best, and I think this perspective gave her strength, as of course it was upsetting to release Dina from her own expert care into the hands of another team of experts.
Now Dina is recovering in the ICU. Having shared our home with Dina and her mother for about a month now, my co-workers Alena, Sabrina and I really noticed their absence as we came together to eat this evening. Dina has been weary and crying in her sweet weak voice every evening. Now with her being in hospital, our house seems so silent. We really miss them both, and so can imagine this is a hint of how much they are missed by their family back in Kurdistan.
As my co-worker Alena has shared, little Dina’s mother likes to use the trademark phrase “Hemu mazbut,” which means “everything is just right.” Today, it was a pleasure to be able to share the news after the surgery of “hemu mazbut,” because everything had gone just fine with the operation.
Dina was admitted to Sheba hospital tonight for her surgery tomorrow. She and her mother are just one room over from two other Kurdish mothers, who said that all of the hospital is Kurdish now!
Dina’s mother always uses the word “masboot” which is an Arabic loan word in Kurdish meaning ‘correct.’ She’ll often say ‘Hamu masboot,’ when she is explaining that she has cleaned the kitchen or helped us put away all of the groceries. As Dina’s surgery is fast approaching, I was thinking of how I hope by this time tomorrow, I can say to her ‘Hamu masboot legel’ Dina, or all is correct (or good) with Dina, after her operation.
As part of her preparation for surgery, it was necessary for Dina to see part of the Cleft Lip and Palate team. She saw a maxillofacial surgeon today, who quickly deemed that the cleft lip and palate prove not to be a contraindication to her heart surgery. This is very good news, allowing the cardiac team to plan and arrange a date for Dina’s heart surgery.
The surgeon we saw today was a kind man, agreeing to see Dina, despite there being a strike at the hospital, with many other appointments being cancelled. We waited for some time, during which Dina’s mother telephoned her two other daughters in Kurdistan; they seem like a very loving family.
In the appointment, the surgeon explained that repairing Dina’s cleft lip and palate will take some time. Dina needs to wait until after she has fully recovered from the heart surgery. Then she can be con-
sidered by a plastic surgeon for her lip repair. After many more months, she could have the soft part of the palate repaired, and then after some years, to be considered for a repair of the hard part of her palate. There are other surgeries which could be considered in her teenage years for her teeth and jaw.
All in all, it is a complex and long process for the cleft repair, and our thoughts now are turning back towards the heart surgery, which we hope will be scheduled soon.
Dina has been one week in Israel, and her mother has concern her condition is worsening. As Dina has a cleft palate, she aspirates during most feedings. Because of this, she is constantly at risk of a chest infection and contracts them frequently.
We brought her to the Sheba’s ER to be seen by a doctor, and the staff did a full assessment on her.
Compared to her first appointment last week, there were not changes in Dina’s chest x-ray and echo. The ER doctor said something before we finished there, that I hoped was quite encouraging to Dina’s mother. He said that although they didn’t find anything new in Dina’s tests today, he still believed Dina’s mother when she said she thought her daughter has gotten worse.
Therefore, they will follow-up tomorrow with Dina’s doctor at the cardiac clinic. This is the kind of excellent care the doctors at Sheba routinely give. Here, these families are honored and taken seriously.
Dina’s first appointment at the hospital was today. It was good to be with her and her mum and start to get to know them a little.
Dina’s mother loves her a lot, is very capable with all things Dina, and knows a lot about Dina’s condition from the doctor in Kurdistan.
At Sheba hospital, Dina’s doctor today confirmed that there is a hole in Dina’s heart. He said that it looks to be what would be a straight forward surgery, however Dina is coming round to be one and a half years old, and having been without surgery, it has caused her to develop high blood pressure in her lungs.
Dina’s mum waited patiently and was in a happy mood for all the appointments today, greeting every one politely and with a very pleasant attitude. Nothing is a problem for her, including Dina’s blood test, which was difficult to do considering Dina’s tiny veins.
The assessment isn’t over; Dina will need to see the cleft palate team to assess her suitability for general anesthesia. Please pray for her health as she waits for the next appointments.
Dina and her mother arrived today at Ben Gurion Airport, after traveling through the night from Kurdistan, northern Iraq.
Dina has a hole in her heart; the situation is complicated by her cleft lip and palate. It increases the risk for her having a general anesthesia, and has also caused problems with her feeding. Her anatomy makes the feeding unsafe, and therefore she is reported to have suffered from recurrent chest infections.
She has an appointment booked for the doctor for the day after tomorrow, at which point we hope the process will begin to help this little one get the help she needs.
Please pray for peace for her and her mother as they settle into two weeks of quarantine at our home in Jaffa.
