Jean Etienne is a student from Haiti. He lives with his parents and two siblings in a mountain village in northern Haiti; his parents are both farmers. He is in the fourth grade and enjoys going to school. Jean Etienne has a cardiac condition called ventricular septal defect and pulmonary hypertension. A hole exists between the two lower chambers of his heart. Blood leaks through this hole without passing through his lungs to obtain oxygen, leaving him weak and short of breath.
To determine if Jean Etienne’s condition is operable, he must undergo a diagnostic cardiac catheterization, a procedure that is not available in Haiti. During the procedure, a catheter probe will be inserted into his heart to perform the necessary measurements and tests. On January 17, he will travel to the Dominican Republic to receive the scan at our medical partner’s care center, Clinica Corominas.
Our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, is asking for $1,500 to cover the costs of Jean Etienne’s travel expenses, catheterization procedure, and lab work.
He says, “I am excited to visit a new country for the first time!”