Surgeons, Specialists Here to Treat Patients with Heart Conditions
About 2000 patients are diagnosed with Rheumatic Heart Disease in Fiji each year.
This was revealed by Auckland City Hospital Consultant Heart Surgeon Dr Parma Nand, who is leading a group of 80 medical personnel from Friends of Fiji Heart Foundation. Dr Nand said the disease started from ages five to 12 years old and progressed until the age of 40 to 45. The team of doctors are on their 13th mission to Fiji performing life saving operations on local heart patients at the Colonial War Memorial Hospital until September 11, 2018.
“For these missions we try to select younger patients, who can have a good life as they grow older,” Dr Nand said.
“I hope we can make a difference in peoples’ lives. A team will be here after the mission to look after the patients for at least a week until they are discharged.” CWMH Cardiology Head of Department, Dr Tevita Baravilala, said RHD was still a huge burden in Fiji.
“We have a lot of patients, we do not have to look hard,” Dr Baravilala said.
“As a third world country I think that is to be expected.
“Our interventional side of cardiology is rushing way ahead they are developing so rampantly, but I am glad that we have decided that the non-interventional side will also be developing.”
He said they had set aside a special date to screen maternity cases because of maternal deaths resulting from undiagnosed RHD. “We have set aside a special date for our pregnant mums and we have picked up new cases during pregnancy of rheumatic heart disease,” Dr Nand said.
“For this trip we are also helping our fellow islanders. We have two Tuvaluans with severe cases who are on the list.” Medical Superintendent Dr Jemesa Tudravu acknowledged the team members for their visit and warmly welcomed them to the hospital.
Friends of Fiji Heart Foundation is a New Zealand registered charitable trust, which provides free operations for needy citizens of Fiji who are suffering from valvular heart disease.