3-year-old Roobens was born with a cardiac condition called Tetralogy of Fallot, “which involves a hole between two chambers of the heart as well as a muscular blockage of one of the valves,” says our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance (HCA). “Blood flows through the hole in his heart without first passing through the lungs to get oxygen, leaving him sickly and short of breath. Because of the severity of this condition, there is a chance it may not be repairable, but the only way to determine this is by inserting a catheter into the chambers of his heart. Since this is not possible in Haiti, arrangements are being made to bring him to Dominican Republic to perform this extremely important test in the hopes that he can have heart surgery later in the year.”
Roobens lives in a valley in central Haiti with his mother, father, and one older brother. His parents are rice farmers. He likes to help around the house and sing and dance.
For $1,500, Roobens will be transported to the Dominican Republic and receive a procedure to diagnose his condition with certainty.
“Following the catheterization procedure, Roobens’s family will know with certainty whether his condition is operable or not,” HCA says. “If operable, plans will then be made to move forward with his surgery as soon as possible.”
“Our family is all praying to God that the test will give us hope for the future,” his mother says.
