After much to-ing and fro-ing, the doctors at Sheba settled on a decision to send Fayez home to Gaza today. It took a lot of work from many nurses to organise everything which he needed to go with, for example, a lot of medicines which are not available in Gaza. Thankfully they all have Fayez’ best interests in their hearts, and as I watched the many huge bags get piled and squeezed into the car, I thought how much has happened from so many people, just with the goal of saving and valuing Fayez’ life.
Fayez is constantly happy, and today was no change, but his mum today was especially happy with the thought of being able to return to her husband and two other sons in Gaza after this long time away.
Thank God for Fayez’ good health, and please pray that God will continue to protect and sustain him. We should see him again in about a month for a check up, and possible further interventions.
Fayez’ catheterisation was postponed this week due to a very long surgery. Today, however he headed into the cath lab in the care of the medical team of Sheba Medical Center, to dilate the stent placed in his last surgery.
Mum was quite worried about this procedure, more worried than I have seen her even for his big surgeries.
It was lovely to spend time with his mum during the three hour wait while Fayez he was in the procedure, and we admired all the decorations and snacks for Hanukkah!
Finally he emerged from the procedure. The doctor explained that it was completely successful, and was very pleased that they had decided to go ahead with it, as there had been a lot of stenosis.
Fayez woke up hungry, and he is recovering well now in the newly re-opened Intermediate Cardiac Unit.
Fayez needs to have another catheterisation later on this week! So the medical team have decided that it’s best for him to remain at the hospital until then. Mum is a little disappointed to remain in the hospital, but as always she has accepted the news in a good spirit, always wanting the best for Fayez.
Thank you for continuing in your prayer support for little Fayez.
Happy Mr. Fayez and his mum were in a crowded waiting room of Sheba Medical Center today. Fayez is no longer in the Intensive Care Unit, but in a general ward, being prepared to return to Gaza!
So pleased he is in a good condition, just a few things need to be arranged for his medication before he can be discharged. Thank God for his recovery.
This happy boy Fayez is still in the Intensive Care Unit of Sheba Medical hospital. Although he continues to recover from surgery, it hasn’t been the easiest time for him, as his temperature has been slightly raised and he still has fluid around his heart.
His mum continues to be so fun to spend time with, despite being in the hospital for quite a while now.
Please keep Fayez in your prayers, and hope for a full recovery soon.
Fayez’ mum called me and showed me on video chat that he has been extubated. She was very happy about it, of course!
When we visited her at Sheba Medical Center later on, we found out that it’s possible he will be ready to have some milk by the end of the day, when he is more awake. Mum is looking forward to having his chest drains removed and being able to hold him properly.
She is delighted with the good result of the Glenn surgery of yesterday. It was so lovely to share her happiness. She kindly asked about the other children at Shevet as always, and fondly spoke about the beach in Jaffa.
Thank God for this good recovery so far for baby Fayez.
Co-worker Sabrina and I arrived at Sheba Medical Center fairly early this morning with two other families from Gaza to be with Fayez’ mum for his surgery day. We saw Fayez’ mum coming out from the operating room. She wanted to organise her bags as she was moving into the Intensive Care Unit after Fayez’ surgery.
She joined us later, and we enjoyed each other’s company a lot. Fayez’ mum is a very kind and generous person, bringing snacks and drinks to share with us all. She is thoughtful about the other families and was also interested to know about the surgery of Alaa, who is another, older patient from Gaza who was having surgery at the same time as Fayez in the adult department.
Little Fayez was in surgery for many hours, but eventually he was safely brought out of the OR and transferred to the ICU. The surgery was long, and he did experience some bleeding. Mum has asked us to pray for his health and recovery.
Mr. Fayez would like to announce that tomorrow is going to be his surgery day! He is feeling very happy about it, and very much enjoyed listening to co-worker Julio speaking Spanish to him today.
We all love this special boy and his mum, they are a fun part of our family.
Please pray for peace for mum and for a safe and successful surgery for this beautiful baby tomorrow. God bless the surgeons and nurses and care staff, may He watch over the whole process.
We had a good but long day with Fayez at Sheba Hospital. Our mission was to admit him so he can stay overnight and have surgery tomorrow.
As we waited, we saw two Gaza family members, i.e., Maryam’s mother and Ziad’s parents, so this made the waiting more pleasant.
Fayez had a full set of assessments, stemming from an ECG to an X-Ray, all before being admitted to the hospital. However, he was a very happy boy all day long, and finally fell asleep as he was brought to his hospital room.
We were hoping that he will have surgery, but we found out later in the afternoon that the doctors are concerned that Fayez may have a virus which means it’s unlikely that the surgery can go ahead tomorrow. We thank you all for your prayers for this little one.
Fayez, the happy mini-gentleman, had to go to the hospital to have his eye checked today. It has been a little infected and we wanted to make sure it wouldn’t affect safety during surgery.
The mother of Fayez administered some eye drops, and the doctor assured her it won’t be a problem for his upcoming surgery.
Thank you for your prayers to cover this little one.
Fayez went into his Catheterization at Sheba Medical Center today. It was diagnostic and interventional Catheterization. They were able to see that he is ready for the Glenn surgery which will hopefully happen in the next few weeks.
Fayez’s mother called various family members as we waited for his cath to finish. This reminded me of last summer when he had his Norwood operation. She would call her relatives and introduce me to them; speaking Arabic over the phone with shoddy reception always makes for an interesting, yet fun time.
For the first few hours after his cath, Fayez was stable. However, this evening, his mother called to say that there have been subsequent complications. Please pray for him as these complications are resolved.
After waiting a long while at the border between Israel and Gaza, this cutie named Fayez came out with his mom and a lot of luggage. I helped her with carrying him.
It was love at first sight. He is a lovely and calm child. It was easy to put him in the car seat, the trip was calm and the grace of the Lord was with us.
Initially we didn’t know if he would be accepted at Sheba Hospital for Catheterization or not, but he was suddenly accepted and all the test required was supplied.
Fayez is now sleeping at the hospital. Tomorrow he will have the Catheterization procedure and after that we will know if he is needing a surgery. Meanwhile, thank you for all your support and prayers that cover this little one and his mother.
Fayez was discharged from Sheba Medical Center today!
His brain MRI came back indicating nothing of major concern. His ability to drink has improved. Both milestones.
So at three o’clock, co-worker Moshe and I went to Sheba to collect him and his mom. The hours that followed weren’t so straightforward. We had to get a milk supplement that was prescribed by the doctor, but none of the chain pharmacies carried it. So we had to get another prescription from the doctor, which was just an easily accessible supplement called grape sugar, which will, in effect, help Fayez’s weight gain.
We proceeded to Erez Border Crossing where we waited for two hours while problems for permission to enter presented themselves again. Fayez’s mom was a trooper through all of it, though by the end she was exhausted. There was a Palestinian ambulance at the border for the majority of our wait. The EMTs with the ambulance were extremely kind, even checking Fayez’s oxygen at one point. Moshe conversed with them easily about the topic of nursing and medicine. Finally at eight o’clock, they allowed Fayez and his mom to enter Erez.
Please continue to pray for Fayez and his mom as they go into quarantine for three weeks. She really wants to see her two older boys who have been waiting for their mom and little brother.
May God watch over Fayez until his one month check-up. Although days like this are long, we can, at the end, thank God for every breath he has given us to live and love in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in.
The attending doctor at Sheba Medical Center today explained that Fayez’ body seems quite stiff, and that also as he is continuing to have swallowing difficulties, they have requested an MRI scan of his brain.
We will keep you updated as we hear the results.
Meanwhile, please be praying for healing from these symptoms, and for peace for his sweet mother.
Fayez had an echocardiogram today in the heart clinic of Sheba Medical Center. As he traveled in his hospital bed, it was a reminder of just how small and precious he truly is. Praise God, his heart is showing improvement.
He still needs to transition from mechanical feeding to drinking milk independently. We continue to pray that he would grow. His mother’s heart is very beautiful. Though she is tired and yearning to return to her other children, she is willing to stay in the hospital so that Fayez can receive the best care possible. Fayez is precious to her, to us, to God.
Beautiful Fayez was asleep when Co-worker Georgia and I found him at Sheba Medical Center (near Tel Aviv) today.
His mum welcomed us. She even gave Fayez to me to hold for a brief time!
Hopefully he will be able return to Gaza soon. He had a brain scan yesterday which showed that everything was okay, but because he has been feeding through a tube for a long time he must relearn how to feed with a bottle before going back home.
Thank God for his life and for bringing him to Israel, despite the hurdles, to receive treatment!
If you can see a little face amongst all these many many blankets, it is Fayez! We found him, moved to a new department, as he is recovering so well, he no longer needs to be in the intensive care unit.
The doctor told us that Fayez had some difficulties with feeding last night, and therefore to give him a thorough assessment, he will have an EEG tomorrow, to test his brain and see if there is any neurological reason for the swallowing difficulty. He will also have an assessment of his feeding.
For now, we can be happy that he seems to be otherwise recovering well.
Please pray that his feeding difficulties are not long lasting.
At the Sheba Medical Center today, Fayez’s mother and I celebrated together as the mechanical ventilation machine was wheeled away from his room. The doctors did not think it was necessary for the machine to be in the room anymore.
He was extubated yesterday, but still receiving a moderate amount of oxygen support. Today, he was completely removed from oxygen support. His mother seemed to be full of hope as she saw the improvement.
Please continue to pray for Fayez, as he will have a check of his head to make sure there is no serious complication; there is some concern that his soft spot is larger than normal.
It was another lovely time with Fayez’ mum this afternoon. She is very happy because he has been extubated and is starting to drink milk now! We shared this happy experience with her mum in Gaza via video chat, which was very lovely.
Thank God that he is doing so well, and we can continue to pray that he heals from his surgery.
Fayez’ sweet mother welcomed me in to their hospital room today. She is so friendly and calm despite being in the hospital with her baby so soon after surgery, and it was very enjoyable to spend some time with her.
She expressed her gratitude to God for helping Fayez to recover so well that they were able to close his chest today!
This is a big victory. Praise God that we are seeing improvement for this tiny baby.
Since being at Shevet, I’ve experienced immense gestures of generosity in hospital rooms and waiting areas, often from mums who have very little themselves. Today was no exception.
As I was in the kitchen area with the mum of one of our Kurdish children, we met Fayez’ mum. She was really happy to see us – even through her face mask, I could tell she was smiling. Without a second thought, she opened the little tuna tin she was carrying, and insisted on sharing it with the two of us. I was touched and encouraged to see God’s heart of generosity, and the way He gives us these special moments together.
Please keep praying for Fayez. Following his surgery yesterday, his chest is still open and he has a long way to go.
Today, Fayez had a scheduled PA Banding surgery. It was successful, though a difficult surgery, and with a small amount of bleeding when he was being stabilized in his room.
I hadn’t met him or his mother before today. But during the hours that we spent waiting for Fayez to come out of surgery, I got to know her a little better. I met her husband and two older boys via a video -chat. They were eager to hear the news of their brother. She also introduced me to her mother, whom she later said raised seven children by herself, as the father died early on.
Strength and resolve runs in this family as was demonstrated by the courage Fayez’s mother showed in the waiting process. After about six hours, Fayez came out of the operating room. The surgeon spoke with us to say that the surgery was done but that it was quite difficult. The next 48 hours would be critical for Fayez, for now his chest must remain open.
Please pray that they might be able to close it soon, and for his mother, who was relieved her baby was out of surgery but worries now for the recovery process.
This was the first time I’d met Fayez and his mum, and I instantly fell in love with them both. Fayez’ mother is one of the sweetest people I’ve met. Where my Arabic quickly ran out, her kind, patient smile seemed to fill in all the gaps. I very quickly forgot the language barrier as we sat there together sharing photos and company.
Ten day old Fayez was doing much better today. The infection is improving and he isn’t on any oxygen. The medical team are hoping it will be possible to perform the surgery next week.
As the doctor explained all this, Fayez’ mother seemed to relax a little. The worry in her eyes turned to relief as she thanked God for her son’s improvement.
Fayez has an infection throughout his body, called sepsis. This is causing many blood imbalances. He is receiving antibiotics, and we are praying that he will be able to recover from this. He is relatively stable now, but the surgeons cannot perform his first surgery until he no longer has the infection.
Please pray for his mother as well, as she is recovering from delivering her beloved son Fayez. She misses her two other sons in Gaza as well.
We thank the Lord that we found Fayez stable in the ICU today. The doctors are waiting for his surgery to be scheduled until after he finishes six weeks of antibiotic treatments due to a virus.
And thankfully, we found the mom was doing well. However, it is difficult for her to be away from her family with two other kids at home and them having a difficult situation. Please pray for this sweet little boy and his family. May God give them grace and provision during this time and keep them under the shadow of His mighty wings. He is able and He can do it.
Yesterday a new baby from Gaza arrived urgently to Sheba Medical Center by ambulance. We welcomed new little Fayez to Israel! And when we write “new” we mean that this little boy is just eight days old.
When we looked for him, he was heading straight for a CT Scan together with a big group of nurses and doctors, as they needed to figure out some specific information about his condition.
In principle, Fayez has a difficult illness called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. Children with this diagnosis are also called “the blue babies.” So you can see, it is a very difficult heart defect in which the functions of the heart are quite limited.
We are praying for a good and life-improving stay for Fayez in Israel.
