Four year old Abdallah, from Nablus, was already in surgery having dental work done when my co-worker Elisa and I arrived. Exactly how many teeth were being pulled, we had no idea, so we would have to wait until the end to find out! In the meantime, we sat with his mother and their Samaritan driver, chatting on and off as we endured the wait. Thankfully, the driver spoke some English, which made it much easier to communicate with Abdallah’s Mum.
We learned from Abdallah’s mother that her son Abdallah was having the dental work done in preparation for an upcoming cardiac surgery, although the date is still uncertain. Before that, he has an eye appointment scheduled for December.
After almost three hours, the dental surgeon appeared with the results. Abdallah had eight teeth extracted, four crowns placed, and his four canines restored. Quite a lot of dental work for one little boy!
We were able to see Abdallah when he woke from the anaesthetic. He was understandably groggy, with a little bleeding and swelling around his mouth, but otherwise doing well. He just needed to rest and remain under observation. He will spend the night in the cardiac ICU and, all going well, return home tomorrow. We left him in dental recovery with his Mum by his side and will visit them again in the morning.
We pray for a peaceful, pain free and uneventful night for Abdallah. Bless him and his Mum.
Today was a good day for little Abdallah from Nablus. He was discharged from Sheba Hospital after having his catheterization there just yesterday.
Abdallah was very excited to go home and rushed out the door of the eleventh floor ICU. I ran after him and tried to persuade him to come back, but he laid on the floor and laughed at me.
Abdallah and his mom then had to wait two hours for their ride to come. It was difficult for his mother because Abdallah is a very active boy, but we are happy that he is back to having fun, like the little boy that he is.
Please pray for Abdallah as he grows stronger and healthier.
I visited Abdallah today on the eleventh floor of the children’s hospital at Sheba Medical Center. He had a successful catheterization yesterday and is recovering today.
When I walked into his room, his mother greeted me. She was snuggling little Abdallah who was asleep under a cozy blanket. I asked about the new bandage on his face. His mother said he received some dental work and an intervention involving his eye. However, he is doing well and he is recovering as expected, and that is what is important.
Pray for Abdallah to heal quickly and be able to return home soon.
Today Abdallah, a new child to Shevet Achim, had a catheterization at Sheba Hospital.
Abdallah’s mother waited expectantly for him to come through the OR doors into the PICU hallway, but after many minutes she asked me to check with the doctor or nurse about how the procedure was going and when it would end. They did not know, but we were thankful for an Arabic-speaking nurse who informed us that Abdallah was already finished and had been moved back to his room on the eleventh floor.
When we traveled up to Abdallah’s room, we found him surrounded by doctors and nurses getting him settled in. Surprisingly, we found him awake! He was groggy and uncomfortable, but awake. An Arabic-speaking doctor explained that the catheterization was successful and Abdallah is doing well.
Four year old Abdallah, from Nablus, was already in surgery having dental work done when my co-worker Elisa and I arrived. Exactly how many teeth were being pulled, we had no idea, so we would have to wait until the end to find out! In the meantime, we sat with his mother and their Samaritan driver, chatting on and off as we endured the wait. Thankfully, the driver spoke some English, which made it much easier to communicate with Abdallah’s Mum.
