Share
“We learned that she had a heart problem around 6 years ago. But she never had a hard time because of it. In fact, she was able to lead a very normal life. She was an active child, and would be running around and playing with her siblings. For the past 4 years or so, she didn't have any problems that gave even an inkling that she was terribly sick. We always paid close attention to her health, but none of us could have seen this coming…” - Sunita, mother
Suddenly complaining of chest pain and cough, she fell critically ill
Ever since her condition had come to light, Sunita and Ramu’s teenage daughter would require hospitalisation for even a small cough or cold. But one morning, last month, things took a turn for the worse when a casual cough was accompanied by extreme breathlessness and chest pains. She was rushed to the hospital, where they learned that the heart condition she had been grappling with had progressed to a stage that now, only a surgery could save her.“She was taken straight to the ICU on arrival, where she remained for many days… Her body had swelled up and they told us that her condition was critical.” - Akash, brother
The teen was primarily diagnosed with rheumatic heart disease, a life threatening heart condition that is a result of damage to heart valves by one or more episodes of rheumatic fever. But in addition to that, doctors also detected multiple sclerosis, a disease where the immune system eats away the protective covering of the nerves, as well as a rare form of acute respiratory distress.
Just as she showed signs of improvement, her condition worsened prompting longer ICU care
Days later, seeing that the young girl’s condition had visibly improved, she was moved to the general ward. But the very next minute, she fell extremely ill again and had to be shifted to the ICU, where she was under high dosage medication and ventilator support. Two weeks have passed since then, and she is back in the general ward - but this time, the doctors have expressed the urgent need of a heart surgery for the girl’s survival.
“It’s like an ultimatum - if she doesn’t get the surgery as soon as possible, she could be knocking on death’s door. She’s currently on a strict diet, where she is being fed protein-rich foods and supplements so reaches the ideal weight to undergo surgery. Getting her this procedure is one thing, but the cost it comes at is another… It is out of our reach! ” - Akash
These parents have no way of affording a surgery that costs lakhs of rupees
Sunita and Ramu live a life of poverty. They’ve brought their children up in hardship, earning INR 200 as daily wage labourers to sustain themselves. Being uneducated, they invested all their hard-earned money into their 3 childrens’ education, in the hope that they would be able to study well and find good jobs that could bail them out of their poor financial situation. Their daughter too was on the track to achieving their dreams, but had to drop out of secondary school due to her deteriorating health.
“With the way that things are right now, there is no way we can meet the expenses of our daughter’s surgery. We struggle to even afford one square meal a day. We are in huge debt after borrowing money to get our child admitted at the hospital - our financial troubles just have no end to them. How in the world are we supposed to arrange for 4.5 lakh rupees? I’m not even in the position to be dreaming of having so much money…” - Sunita
Ramu, the girl's father, is so emotionally distressed after seeing his daughter in such a harrowing state, that he can’t bear to see her in the hospital.
