The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Their gratitude comes from the heart

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 13, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Their gratitude comes from the heart

By Divya Ramamurthi

BANGALORE, JAN. 12. Suad Sadiq is finally smiling and she cannot seem to stop herself. After a two-year anxiety-ridden wait, her four-year-old son, Murtada Sadiq, underwent an operation to correct a congenital heart defect, a few days ago.

Murtada is one of six Iraqi children who have come to Manipal Heart Foundation here for treatment of cardiac conditions.

Sitting beside Murtada on the hospital bed, she looks at him adoringly as he plays with a bright-red toy gun. Ms. Sadiq strokes his hair lightly as he bites into a biscuit soaked in milk. "I am so happy he is playing and eating normally again. I am glad that he is finally okay," she says in Arabic, which is translated into English by Amar Salah, a cardiac surgeon who has accompanied the children.

Mr. Sadiq, who was diagnosed with a congenital heart disorder at 11 months, had a preparatory heart operation in Belgium a year later. The last two years have been tense, with the family not knowing whether there will be an opportunity for another operation. "After the first operation, I was keeping my fingers crossed hoping that someone else would be kind enough to sponsor another operation," she adds.

Over 98 per cent of the people in Iraq who need cardiac surgery are poor, and there is no way that they can afford it in another country on their own, says Zuhair I. Mahmood, a paediatric cardiologist who has also come along with the children from Iraq. The trip for 15 persons, including the six children and a member of each of their families, two doctors and a nurse, is being sponsored by a U.S. non-governmental organisation, Brothers Together, which has an office in Jordan.

Waiting list

The crumbling healthcare system in Iraq has also led to a long waiting list of patients who need specialised cardiac procedures, Dr. Mahmood says. "We have been unable to cope with the latest medical advancements since the U.S. imposed sanctions on us over 15 years ago. We have been living in isolation; it's almost like living in a prison."

Dr. Mahmood is all praise of India for agreeing to allow the surgery on the six children. "No other country has been so generous. They took care of 19 children last year, and they are doing a wonderful job of taking care of these six children now," he says.

The relatives of the five children who have been operated upon so far are relieved. Their weariness from long months of worrying has been wiped away. "I was as exhausted worrying about Murtada's future as I was from worrying about leaving behind nine other children. But, thankfully, all that is in the past now," says Ms. Sadiq.

Sadiqa Gaffar, whose nephew is among the six children, says: "Coming to India is a dream come true. It is all I can ask for from life."

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka

News Update

Stories in this Section

Their gratitude comes from the heart

Cylinder explodes in garage, two suffer burns

10th standard student commits suicide

BMP recovers property in Sanjaynagar

Sessions on sericulture

Water adalat in Indiranagar today

Around the City

In Bangalore Today

Campus Jottings: Expert advice for engineering students