Woodmylens is a preschooler from Haiti. He lives with his mother and father on a farm in the mountains of central Haiti; he likes playing with toy cars and listening to music. Woodmylens has a cardiac condition called rheumatic mitral regurgitation. One of the four valves in his heart was severely damaged due to a fever he suffered earlier in childhood, and cannot adequately pump blood through his body.
Woodmylens will fly to Dominican Republic to receive treatment. On July 29, he will undergo cardiac surgery, during which surgeons will first attempt to repair the damaged valve; if this is not possible, they will implant an artificial replacement. Another organization, Mitral Foundation, is contributing $6,000 to pay for surgery.
Woodmylens’s family also needs help to fund the costs of surgery prep. The $1,500 bill covers labs, medicines, and checkup and followup appointments. It also supports passport obtainment and the social workers from our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, who will accompany Woodmylens’s family overseas.
His mother says, “We are looking forward to this surgery so that our son can start school as a healthy boy.”