The Mahaica boy who was in need of an urgent heart operation made the trip to India last month and has returned after successful open heart surgery
Nine-month-old Kenneth Prince is doing better and according to his relatives, “his suffering has ended for now”. Prince was diagnosed with congenital cyanotic heart disease five months ago and relatives watched as his health deteriorated rapidly.
After many public pleas for assistance the family was able to secure the funding for the operation. Prince’s grandmother, Bernadette Jackson told Stabroek News on Tuesday that many people helped financially, but that it was the contribution of one person which made the trip possible.
“People help us and were are so grateful but it was Mr Hamley Case who made it happen, he made the final payment and we get to travel,” the woman related. She was fighting to hold back tears of joy as she recounted how the doctors in India received and treated the child kindly.
She recalled that on the way to India, Prince fell ill and appeared to have been “dying on my hands” on the plane. The Indian doctors operated on him two days after he arrived in the country and he spent three weeks in the country recuperating; he returned home on Saturday last.
“I want to thank everyone who helped us, there were many companies who gave a little and we are so happy because Kenneth has a new lease on life,” Jackson added. She said too that his post-op care has to be monitored carefully and he is scheduled for a check-up in India next year.
The family is planning a thanksgiving service at the Mahaica Full Gospel Church early next year. Kenneth will celebrate his first birthday on January 16. He was six weeks old when the family observed that something was wrong with him because of how he was breathing. His problems persisted and he was later diagnosed with the heart condition.
