Last night in the Children’s Ward of Hadassah Hospital, Jude had a rough night. He was throwing-up heavily so medical staff gave some medication to stop that. He is getting IV fluids of saline and dextrose to restore and maintain his electrolyte balance.  The doctors will try to find out what is causing the stomach upset. I was told that tomorrow they will try feeding Jude via his mouth.

Thank you for your continued prayers for this little guy. Please keep his mother in your prayers also.

Jude was moved from the PICU of Hadassah Hospital to the Pediatric Ward. We visited him there today. He has been experiencing some fever and was not able to keep his food down yesterday. He is receiving antibiotics as an overall medical treatment.

His SpO2 or his saturation of peripheral blood is 80% with the oxygen support of four liters per minute, and yet Jude seems very weak. He is losing weight and would appear not to be thriving.

We prayed for him and ask you to join us in doing so for this little person, his mother and his family waiting for him in Gaza.

Little Jude looks wide-eyed and aware, has little or no trouble breathing, has been out and about in a stroller to the waiting room on the PICU floor and everything looks like a good recovery. So he is, in fact, improving clinically. His mother took him to the waiting room in his stroller while we were there visiting today.

But underneath his outward appearance, he has a heart that is barely functioning according to the doctor who spoke with coworker Jonathan at Hadassah Hospital. The doctor said Jude is very vulnerable right now. If he were to contract a virus, it would not go well for him and could possible end his life.

Jude’s mother is ever attentive and faithfully looking after her son at every moment, always hoping, always waiting for better news but not really hearing any. Your prayers are highly coveted for this little soul, praying for either a miracle of healing or for a heart transplant to become available. Please continue to be praying with us for Jude.

This big-eyed, skinny, silent, tired and startled-looking infant is playing calmly with a red balloon. He is taking 10 litres of oxygen per minutes and SpO2 is still under 85%. And his body weight is decreasing. This means his engine (heart) is failing to feed his whole body. So the body is decreasing its populations of cells until the engine could afford all of them. We still don’t know all of those processes nor which ones are the best for this infant but we are humbly presenting Jude in front of our Adonai.

Little Jude was having his diaper changed when we entered his ICU room at Hadassah Hospital this afternoon. He has lost much, much weight. His eyes were wide open, and it seemed he was searching into the souls of those he glanced upon and was studying them. Or maybe he was searching for someone to release him from the network of wires, feeding tubes, beeping machines and harsh lights of the ICU.

His mother propped Jude up so he could look around himself. She handed him a few toys which he was able to grab and look at for a moment.

Jude is stable, and things seem well enough, but not so. He’s still needing a new heart, literally a heart-transplant. Nothing else will answer his problems according to the doctors at Hadassah. And little hearts ready for transplanting are extremely few if available at all. His prospects are slim without a miracle from God.  So your prayers are deeply appreciated for this little person. We’re praying for his healing.

Coworker Berith and I visited Jude and his mother at Hadassah Hospital in their ICU. We found Jude very thin, resting on his side, holding a stuffed animal and wide awake.

Prior to entering his room however, Berith and I were stopped by a doctor in the hall outside. He explained that Jude’s heart has basically failed and all their attempts to rebuild Jude’s health within the post-surgery arena and time frame, are not succeeding. He said the medical staff is just beginning to discuss things today with Jude’s mother, although she is not fully aware of their conclusions. They will instead communicate them slowly, and with as much sensitivity as possible over a period of time.

Without a transplant, he won’t make it according to this doctor. There are two heart-recipient lists he said, one for Israeli children and one for Gaza children and neither of them have many options as smaller heart donations are almost non-existent.  Berith took time to pray over Jude.  Jude’s mother needs our prayers also.

Little Jude was serenaded by an Israeli lady today at Hadassah Hospital. She said she enters hospital rooms to sing to children, that it’s a soothing things for kids to hear music rather than the beeping of the machines around the. She sings in the language belonging to the child, so the song was in Arabic. Very lovely ministry.

Jude is still receiving oxygen therapy for a partially-collapsed lung.

Jude has a very complex heart disease. The first step of a two-step surgery has been completed but left Jude with a partially-collapsed lung, requiring physiotherapy to expand it again.

The therapy is a procedure known as PEEP, or Positive End-Expiratory Pressure (seen above) which is applied into both Jude’s nostrils in order to further expand both lungs.

After successful stabilization, Jude will be discharged to await his second operation in a few months. We pray for Jude to further stabilize and grow up a bit more and gain strength for his next operation.

Jude is still in ICU and recovering fast. He was very calm and looked far less edematous than before.

Our little Jude seems to have improved pretty well after his surgery five days ago in Hadassah Hospital. When we came into his room, he just woke up and was fully conscious, looking right into our eyes, seeking for his mother. Whenever he lost sight of her, he started to whimper for her and made actual sounds!

Since he got some milk yesterday, which put him over the top and raised his blood pressure, he can’t take anything orally anymore, including meds, but has to receive through tubes.

Right now Jude is receiving oxygen support but a nurse explained that they want to reintubate, however non-invasively, that is, a nasal intubation therapy. This way his lungs get a bit more rest and Jude’s throat is spared the harsh effects of traditional intubation.

But for now he is taking a lot of rest and enjoying having his pacifier again. We thank God for Jude’s step by step recovery. Please keep on praying for him!

Today I found Jude successfully breathing on his own for the first time after his surgery at Hadassah Hospital. Nonetheless his mother was in tears following a cyanotic episode this morning, and the result of an echo which then showed there is some leakage from his heart valve that was repaired during his surgery.

I reassured her there are always ups and downs following surgery, and that it is the Lord who reigns over all things, and that we can thank him in good times and bad (our Muslim neighbors firmly believe this). Please join in our prayer for healing for Jude, and peace for his mother.

Jude was resting in his Pediatric ICU room at Hadassah Hospital. He was still intubated, however medical personnel stated that they wanted to try extubating him at some point during the day.

Meanwhile, Jude was from time to time appearing to cry and struggle with something. He was given some pain medicine and that calmed him down.

I observed his tiny little foot peeking out from under the blanket. Not a part of him wasn’t connected to something of importance as it related to keeping him well and stable.

We continue to trust that this little one will come through this. Prayers appreciated.

He looks like he has a swollen face and eyelids and it is relatively common after Glenn procedure because of the SVC (Superior Vena Cava), a draining big vein of his head,  is cut and re-connected to pulmonary arteries. Due to abnormal high pressures of pulmonary arteries, SVC could have some “traffic jam” for a while and that’s probably why Jude has a swollen face and neck.

As time goes by, high pressure of his right ventricle would be normalized and then his facial edema will be gone away. Jude looks like he’s improving fast however so we’re thankful for that and we continue to pray for his complete recovery !

Early this morning, I took the bus to Hadassah Hospital to be with Jude’s mother today during his surgery. When I arrived in his room, Jude was peacefully sleeping in the arms of his mother – he didn’t know what was about to happen. But in his mother’s eyes, I could read all her emotions, they didn’t need any words. She held her baby boy close to her heart, not knowing when and if ever she will be able to hold him again. She went through this before, but it is hard every time.

A little later they brought us downstairs in the surgery preparation room where a doctor explained to her again about the surgery and the risks included. I listened to the lady who translated that there is risk of serious damage to his heart, his brain – and then she stopped and slowed down – and there is risk of death. I never recognized so much as I did today how heartfelt those conversations also have to be for the medical staff. To tell a mother who is holding her beloved baby for the last minutes before the surgery that they will take good care of that child but they can’t promise anything.

After being certain she understood everything, Jude’s mother got dressed up in protective clothes while I got to hold Jude for a last moment and then she was allowed to carry him to the OR and wait with him until he fell asleep.

When she came out she had tears in her eyes and there wasn’t much more to say than we will pray!

It was long waiting hours and towards the end his mother kept saying that she knew something was wrong, but there wasn’t a problem. After around six hours the surgeon came out and explained that everything went well and his heart looks good. It was quite a big surgery though, starting with the Glenn procedure in which they connect the superior vena cava (the vein that returns blood from the upper part of the body) directly to his pulmonary artery. They also repaired one valve and also completed the DKS procedure in which they successfully joined the aorta and pulmonary artery. All of this is a big change in Jude’s blood circulation so his heart will need some time to adjust to all of it and will most likely not be an easy post-surgery recovery. After two more hours Jude was stable in his room in the ICU and we were allowed to see him again – his mother very relieved!

We pray for Jude’s healing, and are thankful for the care he’s been given thus far; for God’s protection in his life. We pray for strength to be restored after this surgery and for peace to be with Jude’s mom who is going through all of this with him.

There is no more fever !

Today my daughter Yieun visited little Jude at Hadassah Hospital.  Jude was surprised at our visit and played with us.

The doctor said if Jude’s abdomen seems to be in a good state, he could have his heart surgery this Tuesday. We pray for Jude’s good surgical outcome and recovery.

We visited Jude at Hadassah Hospital and found him happy and resting. His fever has passed, and he’s started drinking milk on his own, praise God! It’s drop-fed to him through a small plastic teat, and he drinks with such enthusiasm that it’s all gone within seconds. He’s up to 15 ml a day, with the amount being increased in steady increments as he grows stronger and capable of handling more.

If all continues well, and if he continues growing at this pace, he may have his surgery as early as next week–welcome relief for his mother, who’s eager to go home!

Sister Miriam and I prayed over Jude, and we marveled at how beautiful he is. He wasn’t quite sure what to make of us, but he was peaceful during our visit. Pray that he’ll continue growing healthy and strong!

Little Jude has improved a little in his health lately. He is feeling better again and doesn’t have a fever anymore. Unfortunately he is loosing weight and the doctors at Hadassah Hospital don’t know why. He can’t eat by himself right now, but gets food through a tube.  Doctors are hoping that if his fever doesn’t come back, they can finally remove the feeding tube beginning of next week so he can eat by himself again. Hopefully Jude will be fine soon.

This month he  should also have a big heart surgery to correct the blood flow in his body. Please pray for his preparedness for the surgery which he needs soon.

Little Jude had his diagnostic Catheterization on Monday 27 March at Hadassah Hospital in Ein Karem.  Complications arose however just after the cath, including fever and blood in his stools.

Doctors are keeping him under observation as they try to find the reasons why. Sending up our prayers for this little life and for some clear answers to begin the best treatment for him.

Today we brought our little sunray Jude to Hadassah Ein Kerem for tests, because tomorrow they will do a diagnostic catheterization of his heart. Please pray for Jude and his loving mother. Pray for a good result.

Today I brought little Jude to Hadassah hospital for his echo. He was sleeping the whole drive there even though it was storming outside. At the hospital he was patient throughout his echo and didn’t cry a lot. His kind doctor told us Jude is doing well, but he has to have a diagnostic catheterisation before his big surgery. The procedure will already be on Monday so Jude and his mother will stay in our Jerusalem House until his admission on Sunday.

Please pray for them in this time away from their family and for a successful cath.

Our little Jude had an echo check-up at Hadassah Hospital today. There were some difficulties about getting him the right appointments at the right times, so we took him to the echo clinic and asked if they had an opening for us.

After waiting a while, a very kind doctor took time for us out of his busy schedule. He answered a few of Jude’s mother’s worries, and told us that everything is progressing normally, and that Jude will be ready for his next operation after six months. He should return in three months for another echo.

Before Jude was okay to go back to Gaza, we also needed a doctor from the plastics department to make sure that Jude’s shoulder is healing the way it should be. We went to the pediatric department where Jude was hospitalized before his discharge, and asked who his plastics doctor is. They didn’t know, but they were very helpful with figuring out some details about Jude’s medicines, and they also told us where to ask about the plastics appointment.

We went up to the department and asked if they could make sure it was safe for him to go home. Even though it was a slightly unorthodox way of doing things, they were incredibly helpful.

Jude’s shoulder is healing well, and he can have his stitches out after a week or two. He will have to return here for that, though we don’t know exactly when yet. Thank God for all of the helpful and self-sacrificing doctors at Hadassah today! May God bless them for their good work. And praise God for Jude’s recovery – may he continue to do well after his return home to Gaza.

Little Jude had a surgery at Hadassah Hospital today to fix the infected wound on his shoulder. After his initial surgery at Hadassah, a misplaced IV opened the opportunity for a bacterial infection, which escalated to become a large wound. He has been on antibiotics and topical medications for a while now, but he hasn’t been making the progress the doctors wanted him to.

They decided to do a surgery to clean and close the wound. Yesterday, when I asked them about it, they said they would do a skin graft from his leg. However, they didn’t have to! They were able to clean and close the area without skin grafts, and he’s doing well so far.

When I first came in to visit today, he had been out of surgery for two hours, and he wasn’t allowed to eat yet. He was very hungry, and in a lot of pain from his shoulder as he woke up from his sedation. While I was there, he was sucking on his pacifier so strongly that it went in and out of his mouth. His mother said, “It hurts him, but he’s so strong.”

After I left the room, two doctors came in to do a blood test, after which he was allowed to eat. Jonathan and coworker Grant went in to visit him afterwards, and watched him have his first food after surgery. He was very hungry, and after calmed down a bit. Thank God for our sweet little boy’s good surgery!

Please pray that the infection will respond well to the antibiotics and that he will be able to go home soon.

Little Jude is continuing to improve well in most areas, but today he vomited a couple times. His doctor thinks he might have a virus. But that is one of the only things standing between him and being discharged from the hospital, as long as the sore on his shoulder gets looked at by a specialist. He is doing well, though for now he is in a special isolation room in the pediatric ward because of his virus.

When I came in, he was peacefully sleeping, and his sweet mother and I sat and talked quietly for a few minutes. Please pray that little Jude will recover quickly from whatever is causing his vomiting, and that he will soon be able to go home.

Today we visited Jude at Hadassah Hospital with my coworker Tineke. Jude is having an improvement, he’s eating from the bottle and he’s not using the sonda anymore. He has to make some stops to finish the bottle because he gets tired, he’s still learning how to do it. Jude was moved from the Pediatric ICU to the pediatric hospital wing.

Jude was staring at Tineke almost all the time. When we went to the room, the nurse was cleaning a wound in Jude’s shoulder, this appears because during the surgery, a needle came out.  Because of this, the nurses and doctors asked us to be careful and the next time to avoid entering his room with personal belongings. The person in charge of the infection’s department is worried about this issue because this is a resistant bacteria and could be transmitted easily; this is why Jude is isolated.

Praise God, Jude is already extubate and eating by his own; our prayer now should be for wisdom for the medical staff to take the correct next step for him, now is uncertain.

Today at Hadassah Hospital, I first met Jude’s mother in the floor kitchen, chatting with the grandmother of another child here. They were very kind and immediately offered me a cup of coffee. Then Jude’s mother and I went to visit Jude.

Jude was crying a bit, so I went over to pat his head and talk to him while his mother began to prepare his milk. It turns out Jude wasn’t hungry yet, he was just tired. He fell asleep quickly, and then his mother and I sat and chatted for a while.

She showed me pictures of Jude’s older brother and father, and I showed her pictures of my family. After we had been chatting for maybe ten minutes, Jude’s oxygen dropped from 70% to 50%, which made the alarms on his screen go off. A nurse leaned in and asked us to wake him up a bit to see if that would improve his oxygen level. It did, and he jumped back up to 78%.

But as soon as he fell asleep again, it dropped back down. The nurse came in and turned him onto his back – it worked like magic, and he was sleeping peacefully with good oxygen levels in no time.

Jude’s mom says he is eating well, though it remains a time-consuming process. Please pray that this sweet boy will continue to improve, and that God will encourage his mother while she is away from the rest of her family.

Our adorable little Jude is doing very well after his surgery at Hadassah Hospital. Today the doctors were helping his mother to teach him how to drink milk. They gave him the nipple from a bottle to train his mouth how to drink. When I came in to visit today he was comfortably snuggled on his mom’s lap. He is even able to drink mother’s milk, only using some formula to fill in the gaps.

Today he needed a special bottle to help him drink. The doctor gave me a handwritten note with the specific details written down, along with a bit of money to pay for it. I told her that Shevet could pay for it, but she shook her head and said, “No, no, I want to help!” Jude’s mother was very happy and thankful to have the bottle. It’s beautiful to see how well the doctors care for this baby. Since he has hypoplastic left, Jude will most likely need at least two more surgeries, but for now he is doing very well.

Please pray that he will continue to recover, and that his learning to drink will go well.

Jude’s mother was able to swap places with Jude’s Grandpa has been with Jude at Hadassah Hospital since his arrival there last week.

When we arrived at the Gaza border this morning, Jude’s mother was not there.  Moments later, it became clear that she was sitting at a bus stop near Ashkelon, together with a cousin.  Her cousin wanted to accompany her to the hospital, and he also speaks English.

When they arrived in Jerusalem, Jude’s Grandpa had already gone outside the hospital, a very big place, and was nowhere to be found.  On the ward, Jude’s mother was taken under the care of a dear sister.  We had time for a quick photo of Jude in an electric bouncer, and then we went looking for grandpa, because we were set to return him to Gaza and the border would close at 3 pm. We found him eventually, and returned him in time to the crossing.

We pray for Jude and his mother.  that Jude also feels his mother’s presence.  Thank God for all He has done thus far.

Today Jonathan and I visited Jude at the Hadassah Hospital PICU unit. He seems to be doing okay with the help of a little extra oxygen, but his breathing is still shallow and rapid.

Please pray for this beautiful little man, that our father would watch over him as he recovers and help stabilize his breathing so he can safely move to the next stage on his road  to wellness and growth.

Father we thank you for your hand on this little precious life.

Jude had his first surgery today, and surprised us by coming out of the OR already by 11:30 am. Upon beginning the operation, the surgeons discovered that they were able to do a simpler surgery than expected, and they are very pleased with the result. Jude has several defects in his heart, and the doctors decided to proceed with the difficult series of surgeries needed to reroute blood to the lungs to accommodate a single-ventricle heart rather than attempt reconstruction with two functional ventricles. For now, Jude is on his way to recovery in the ICU at Hadassah with his grandfather by his side:

Pray for a full recovery for this little guy, who still has quite a long road ahead of him.

Even though Hadassah’s new surgeon Prof. Serraf will only arrive from Sheba on Sunday, they accepted Jude to their cardiac critical care unit on Friday:

It turned out on echo that Jude has a hypoplastic heart, the most difficult defect to treat:

Jude’s on the schedule for surgery Thursday, the day after Yom Kippur, and will be the first child operated on by the new surgeon. Hadassah has a new pediatric cardiac ICU with eight beds that is empty at this point, so they have great potential to bless Israel’s neighbors:
 

Please pray for four newborns in Gaza, with difficult diagnoses who are all awaiting transfer to a hospital in Israel for urgent heart surgeries. After a lengthy delay while we searched for a place, Hadassah hospital has accepted little Jude, who has multiple heart defects and will be transported to Hadassah tomorrow God willing:

We hope the other children will also be accepted soon. Please pray for the shepherd’s staff of protection over all these precious babies and their families.