Johanna Araceli - A child with Tetralogy of Fallot
Newsletter's
January 20th, 2005
February 5th, 2004
November 19th, 2003
Johanna Pic's
April 19th, 2005
Sad News - Johanna passed away April 19th, 2005 in Cusco, Peru. Dr Sanchez
would like to thank the Rotary Club of Chula Vista and all CondorSoul Mission
volunteers for all there monetary support for Johanna illness the past and for
being able to cover her funeral cost with the Rotary funds for Peru.
Thank you for all your support.
Johannes Lasthaus
January 20th, 2005
Coming back from Peru we only can report that Johanna is doing well under
here circumstances. Unfortunately Johanna had to be hospitalized and her health
will not improve. The parents are very devastated and have a hard time
understanding her condition and the fairness of it. Father John and Carlos
talked to them in length trying to make them understand better and to help ease
there pain. The Rotary Club of Chula Vista is helping with the Cost for the
hospital and the Oxygen.
Johannes Lasthaus
February 5th, 2004
Johanna Araceli—
Dear Rotarians and friends of Johanna, I just came back
from a two-week trip to Peru to organize our second mission trip and make
arrangements for Johanna’s situation. Johanna is our little girl from Peru,
whom we are desperately trying to help out with her severe lung–heart condition.
As I mentioned before, I had an excellent American
cardio-vascular surgeon do extensive studies in Lima to see if she could have an
open-heart surgery to repair her heart. Unfortunately, after extensive studies
and consultations the surgeons found out that her condition was beyond repair
due to severe pulmonary hypertension, caused by a large patent Ductus Arteriosus
that has been present since birth.
The only avenue left for her would be a heart-lung
transplant, which unfortunately is not offered in Peru. On the bright side, the
child was quite improved in Lima, which is a city at sea level, and plans were
made for her to stay in Lima.
I brought the father and family to Lima and I tried to help
them to get a job and assisted with money that many of you have graciously
donated for her care. Due to social problems and since Johanna’s family lives in
the high Andes, they were unable to get accustomed to the environment in Lima.
In fact, it was Johanna who wanted so much to go back to Cuzco, which is 14000
feet high and quite deadly for her condition due to the lack of oxygen. I had
long discussions with the family but to no avail, they were set to go home and
take their chances.
The best I could do was to buy two sets of oxygen
cylinders, so that she could use it in Cuzco, at least on a continuous basis. If
she gets worse at higher altitudes, I may have to make arrangements to send her
to a closer place to Cuzco on the coast to be at sea level where she does best.
Fortunately, thanks to the money that you have given, her ongoing care will be
possible. Her parents are grateful to Rotary of Chula Vista for your help and
also to those who are not Rotarians but who think the same way we do. Please
see some of the pictures that I took in Lima, not the best but it will do.
Dr. Carlos J Sanchez
Chula Vista Rotary
As you recall, we made arrangements with the Doctors to
take her of her immediate cardiac decompensation. Then arrangements were made to
send her to Lima, the capital of Peru, to have evaluation and major surgery at
the children’s Hospital. Unfortunately according to her mother she was told
that her case was incurable and that her insurance would not cover it. As you
recall the father is a laborer, who does tiles by hand and with no income at all
to undertake her surgery.
Immediately I made calls to different places and finally
got in touch with the mother and the mayor of the city of Andahuaylillas. I am
in the process of getting in touch with her Doctors in Lima and different
entities so that we can send her again to Lima and see if surgery is done. This
child has a remediable heart condition and we should see to it, because she has
touched our hearts and we just can’t let her go. I will keep you posted on the
developments and I know that I am going to need your moral support again.
Carlos J Sanchez MD
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