Three-year-old Jamima lives with her mother, father, and grandparents in Haiti. She likes dressing up and going to church. Her father is a school teacher, and her mother stays at home with her.
Jamima was born with an atrial septal defect, a cardiac condition characterized by the presence of a hole in the wall separating the top two chambers (atria) of her heart. Because of this hole, oxygenated blood coming from the lungs and deoxygenated blood headed to the lungs mix, forcing her heart and lungs to work harder to provide oxygenated blood to the body. As a result, Jamima is sickly and weak. Without treatment, the right side of Jamima’s heart will grow larger and become weaker.
Jamima will need surgery to close the hole between the upper chambers of her heart. However, before she can undergo any operation, she will need a comprehensive cardiac evaluation, including labs and medicine. Jamima’s evaluation is currently scheduled for May 2.
Watsi’s medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, requests $1,500 to cover the costs of the cardiac evaluation. Another organization, Gift of Life International, is contributing $5,000 to pay for Jamima’s heart surgery and post-operative hospital care.
“We have known that Jamima had a heart problem ever since she was born, but we never thought we would be able to fix it,” shares her father. “We are very thankful to everyone who is helping her have surgery!”