Today, coworker Ben and I went to Erez Border crossing to collect Sundis and her mother and bring them to Sheba Medical Center.
Sundis had first a appointment at the gastro clinic. The doctor is assuming that she has some liver problems so he scheduled a gastroscopy which Sundis will have in a few months to see what exactly is going on.
Sundis also had an echo today. The doctor told me that for now, Sundis is doing okay but she definitely needs further treatment.
All the doctors have to discuss together what to do exactly for Sundis, and it is possible she will need a heart valve implant. Please pray that the Lord will give wisdom to the doctors and that he will bless Sundis and her lovely mother.
Today, coworker Amelie and I picked up Sundis from The Erez border crossing of Gaza. I was very happy to see her again because she was the first Gaza child I have seen in my time here at Shevet.
Sundis underwent an echo and kept a pacemaker appointment today at Sheba Hospital. The doctors said that everything looks good for now and that she has to come again for another check-up in two months.
Her second appointment was at the adult cardiac building, so a van picked us up to bring us there. While waiting outside, Sundis enjoyed making some pictures with me.
One doctor said today that he is so glad to see Sundis alive and doing so well. Let’s thank God for everything He has done in Sundis’ life and bless the doctors and medical staff that have been able to help her!
Today, co-worker Doro and I had to go to Erez Border Crossing to pick up happy Sundis and her mother for a follow-up echo at Sheba hospital.
It was really nice to see Sundis and her mother again. Sundis enjoyed the hospital day and was playing and driving around in a wheelchair during the time that we had to wait for the doctor.
The doctor told us that Sundis’s heart function has improved a lot since the last time, praise God. This was good news, which Sundis and her mother were happy to hear.
Mother and daughter were able to return to Gaza today and Sundis has to come back for a liver and cardiac follow-up two months from now. Please continue to pray that Sundis stays well.
We are very happy that Sundis, who is full of life and her friendly mother were discharged from the hospital today and are staying with us in Jaffa for some days. They have been in the hospital for some months now. Due to this, the Shevet van was filled with bags and presents and things, they received from the hospital during their time there.
It is nice to see how much the hospital cares for the children. Sundis needs to go back to the hospital in the next few days to check on her condition. During the waiting time but meanwhile, we are happy that she is with us and one of our other Gaza children. with her from staying together in the hospital is very happy as well to have a friend now at the community home in Jaffa. Please pray for a nice time for Sundis and her mother.
Sundis’s heart is doing well. She is done with all the surgeries for her heart. But now she has a problem with her liver, so she will have another surgery next week at Sheba Hospital to fix the problem.
Today she was very tired from the medicine she is getting. But overall, Sundis is doing really well. Please pray for a good liver surgery next week and a good recovery.
Sundis is recovering well from her Interventive Catheterization yesterday at Sheba hospital. Her mother was wheeling her around the hospital, and taking her out to get some fresh air during the day.
The doctors told Sundis’s mother that they would like to check Sundis’s liver tomorrow. Please be praying that she would continue recovering well.
Sundis had a successful interventional catheterization this afternoon. The doctors dilated the conduit between her right ventricle and pulmonary artery and placed a stent in it to relieve elevated pressure on the right ventricle. Her tricuspid valve is also stenotic, but as the blood flow through it is much better than before, the doctors decided not to intervene yet.
It seems that Sundis and her mother have made friends with everyone in the pediatric ward. While waiting during the cath, her mother stayed busy encouraging other mothers with children in the ICU.
Thank God for his provision for Sundis and pray for continued recovery for her.
I would say Sundis is recovering well after her surgery, but after seeing her today, that seems an understatement.
She was running around her room playing with the physical therapist who came to do some exercises with her. She is out of the ICU and on a pediatric ward floor now.
I couldn’t believe she had surgery only three days ago. Please keep praying for her as further intervention may be needed. But thank God for now that she is full of vitality as any child should be.
At 8 a.m. in Sheba hospital, in the adult OR due to lack of space in the Pediatric arenas, doctors began the challenging procedure of the extraction of Sundis’s old pacemaker leads from within the heart tissue. It was a delicate and sensitive procedure, but a successful one nevertheless, ending at approximately 11 a.m. The old pacemaker wasn’t working properly for more than a year, during which time Sundis was daily fainting and withheld from attending school as her situation of potentially falling in a faint was a dangerous one. The skilled team of doctors had placed a new pacemaker in Sundis two weeks ago. They checked the new while extracting the old, and all went well.
As I write, Sundis is in a recovery room for one hour, after which she will be moved to the Pediatric ICU. Lord willing, in a week or so, Sundis will undergo another balloon-type surgery, a hemodynamic procedure.
She took an ambulance ride to get from recovery to the Pediatric ICU.
Coworker Jonathan and I had a coffee with Sundis’s mother during some of the waiting period this morning. After the doctor announced all had gone well for Sundis, her mom was quietly thankful, but a bit too exhausted to show much emotion. She deeply thanks you all for your prayers for Sundis.
If you look closely in the picture in the left corner on the top, you can see a MacDonald’s box. When I went to Sheba hospital to visit Sundis and her lovely mother today, they shared with me that one of the doctors got it for Sundis. That shows once again how much the hospital cares for all of our children. Sundis even offered me some of it and was not willing to accept a no as an answer. She is really kind even though she doesn’t like it very much if you take a picture of her.
Sundis needs another heart surgery, which is planned for this coming Thursday. Please continue to pray for her.
Sundis is doing much better and is not in the pediatric ICU at Sheba hospital anymore. She is in a normal ward and quite likes to spend time outside of the building now and not to be inside her room all the time, laying in her bed.
It was really nice to visit her today and to spend some time outside of the hospital together with Sundis and her lovely mother.
She even jumped in the car for some time, when co-worker Tabea came to collect some families.
She is a lovely girl and seems to warm up the more often that we visit her. Please keep praying for her. She might need another surgery in the future.
Sundis was very tired when I met her in her room at Sheba hospital. I think it’s a hard time she is going through.
She is currently back in the pediatric ICU because there is liquid around her lungs. The doctors had to use a chest drain. Tomorrow they will do an ultrasound to know more about it.
Please pray for Sundis and also her mother who is caring so sweetly for her daughter.
Sundis had an operation today at Sheba Medical to place a new pacemaker. The surgery went very well and when her mother and I went to see her, she was already extubated and waking up.
Sundis’ old pacemaker is still in place. The doctor said they will leave it until they see that the new one is working properly. For now, they will wait and see how she recovers before deciding on a further course of treatment.
Please pray that the new pacemaker functions well and for a complete recovery for Sundis.
This afternoon, I found Sundis painting a picture and chatting with her older sisters on the phone. She seems to be coming out of her shell a bit more every time we visit her. Her mother is always excited for visitors and eager to introduce us to her older daughters via video call.
According to a doctor in the Sheba hospital pediatric ward, Sundis has an infection in her blood that is delaying her surgery. Please pray that the infection will clear quickly with treatment so the doctors can proceed with her surgery as planned.
According to a floor nurse, Doctors are waiting in their decision regarding Sundis’s next surgery and sometimes it takes doctors a while to decide on their direction when it involves a major surgery.
Meanwhile, Sundis is a special girl. When I first arrived to Sheba hospital today, and stood at the entrance to Sundis’s room, Sundis came to me immediately. She looked at me with curiosity and loved my hand bag. But the moment I stepped into the room, she was really shy. It was interesting to see how she changed in a couple of seconds; on the one hand shy, but on the other, she wants to be part of everything.
Sundis’ echo at Sheba hospital last week, showed that her pacemaker was not working; the doctors have now synchronized it to her heart, so it should function properly now.
However, a conduit that was placed ten years ago between her right ventricle and pulmonary artery, has now narrowed and her doctors are considering the best course of treatment. Additionally, they would like Sundis to see some other specialists, including a neurologist, to assess her development.
When coworker Alena and I visited Sundis this afternoon, we found her exploring up and down the hallway in the pediatric ward. She’s active and curious, but very shy.
Please pray that the doctors would determine the best intervention for Sundis’ narrowed conduit, and for her continued growth and development.
Today at Sheba Medical Center, I met a little girl named Sundis and her friendly mother for the first time.
Sundis had to come to the hospital for an Echo which showed that her current pacemaker is not working properly for her. Therefore she is admitted to the hospital and they are planning on doing more assessments for her in order to figure out how to help her. They have said Sundis needs to have a catheterization soon.
In general, Sundis is a very active and happy girl and likes to go around everywhere she is because she is getting bored otherwise. She was a brave girl during the blood test that they did for her and cried just a bit. But her lovely mother was there for her during the whole time.
Please pray for them to settle in well into the hospital.
Today, coworker Ben and I went to Erez Border crossing to collect Sundis and her mother and bring them to Sheba Medical Center.
Sundis also had an echo today. The doctor told me that for now, Sundis is doing okay but she definitely needs further treatment.
All the doctors have to discuss together what to do exactly for Sundis, and it is possible she will need a heart valve implant. Please pray that the Lord will give wisdom to the doctors and that he will bless Sundis and her lovely mother.
