Foundation marks over 100 successful surgeries

AS the Sai Prema Foundation marked over 100 successful heart surgeries at its Sai Sanjeevani Children’s Hospital, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka also took time to reflect the impact the occasion left on him personally.

Speaking at the celebration, Mr Rabuka was moved to tears when he revealed that one of his two great-grandsons had suffered from congenital heart issues.

“Your invitation, requesting that I officiate in today’s (yesterday) ‘Gift of Life’ ceremony warms my heart, however, I’m left with a feeling of trepidation because I can’t help thinking about how your young patients and their anxious parents cope during a difficult and traumatic time,” he said.

“Sulu and I are blessed with seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. I consider our family abundantly blessed because at 74 years, I am still able to engage in a few physical activities with them.

“Congenital heart issues are not new to my family. In fact, we can relate to many families who are here today, and have been at the receiving end of concerning news about the health of our very young.”

Mr Rabuka said his greatgrandson Dallas was diagnosed with rheumatic heart ailment and had to get an injection at the Nuffield Clinic every three weeks.

“Dallas is four-years-old and lives with us in our family home. He is very dear to us. Sulu and I cannot even imagine what our world would be like if his health condition deteriorated to a level that would require surgery.

“We count ourselves lucky because so many children present today have had to undergo open heart surgery.

“The Sai Prema Foundation’s intent to build a hospital dedicated to saving the lives of children who live with congenital heart disease is nothing short of a blessing to many families who would never be able to afford open heart surgery abroad.”

Director of the Sai Sanjeevani Children’s Hospital Fiji, Dr Krupali Tappoo, said she was pleased with the achievement.

“For a young hospital to make such a significant impact upon our beloved nation is truly remarkable,” she said.

“Tremendous amounts of hard work, dedication and sacrifice have been made by medical and non-medical individuals in Fiji and around the world to enable this hospital to carry out this monumental task.”

The surgeries were carried out by a specialist team from Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospital in Mumbai, India.