Abu Bakar’s Success Story
Since inception in 2012, we at Pakistan Children’s Heart Foundation (PCHF), have financially supported 4,479 child heart surgeries. This is the success story of 8-year-old Abu Bakar, who was diagnosed with a Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) called a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).
A VSD is a birth defect in which there is a hole in the wall (septum) that separates the 2 upper chambers (ventricles) of the heart. This leads to extra blood being pumped into the lungs and forces the heart to work harder. If this is not repaired the risk of heart failure or other complications like a stroke increases.
Abu Bakar was suffering from signs and symptoms of CHD, such as breathing difficulties, since birth. His family resides in Okara, a town which has a predominantly agriculture-based economy and one that does not have advanced medical facilities.
When Abu Bakar was taken to a local doctor for a check-up, his condition could not be diagnosed and his parents were told to travel to Lahore for further tests. Now, they were really worried and soon their worst fears would come to life.
After undergoing an Echocardiography (ECHO), which is a cardiac ultrasound, Abu Bakar’s VSD and the fact that his life was in danger was confirmed. He required relatively expensive life-saving treatment as soon as possible and that revelation had his father immensely troubled.
He works as a labourer in Saudi Arabia and solely supports his entire family. He wanted his family not to be distressed though and immediately started visiting various hospitals for treatment options. This would be the beginning of a long and hard journey.
Everywhere he went, he was told of a waiting queue of thousands. It took him years before he ended up at Bahria International Hospital Orchard (BIHO) in Lahore. This visit would change his fortunes.
BIHO happens to be one of our partner hospitals and when the team there heard that financial support was required in this case, they immediately referred them to us. As we have been for over a decade, we were their source of genuine hope.
After an initial meeting for patient registration, in which they were also told about the thousands of lives we have helped save, we were pleased to inform them that we would be able to financially support Abu Bakar’s surgery. We are grateful beyond measure to our donor base for making this possible.
Abu Bakar’s father was also able to contribute towards the planned procedure, which is known as a VSD Closure. The surgery would take place at BIHO Lahore and an experienced team of CHD healthcare professionals would lead it.
Now that all surgery-related preparations were complete, along with accommodation and other formalities taken care of, Abu Bakar’s loved ones were assured that he was in the best of hands. Despite trying to stay positive though, the following hours were extremely difficult for them.
When Abu Bakar, who is blessed with a tremendous fighting spirit, emerged from his heart surgery as a ‘CHD Warrior’, his whole family was overwhelmed with emotion. They were so happy and full of appreciation. As an organization, we feel privileged to be in such a position, paving the way to a normal life for children.
For CHD affected families, no matter how hard things get, no matter how impossible things may seem, we at PCHF – charity you can trust with all your heart, are here for you. Our goal is to ensure that not a single child born with CHD in Pakistan remains untreated.
Legendary Pakistani cricketer, Misbah Ul Haq, is also alongside us on our journey to conquering CHD, by helping build the nation’s first dedicated Children’s Heart Hospital & Research Institute, as a PCHF Board Member.
You can join us as well and donate towards child heart treatment or hospital construction. Together, let’s do our utmost to save young lives and help shape a brighter future. Play your part, save little hearts: https://pchf.org.pk/donate/
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