Advocacy Update: to date 4 children have recieved life-saving heart surgery

Abigail Adomoako: 14 years, currently attends Anglican Primary in Humjibre

Mother, Agnes Obeng: “When she was a baby, I had taken her to GBC Hospital [private hospital about 20 minutes from Humjibre] and they had referred her for surgery. When she was 3 years, I took her to Korle Bu Hospital in Accra for her first heart surgery, but afterwards, I saw that she was still very weak. She became tired after walking just a few yards. At times, she would be sick for days and her body would shake; her breathing was hard and fast. I had been trying for years to raise the money for her second surgery, but $8,000 was too much for me to raise. That’s when GHEI helped me find the Boston Children’s group, [a team of pediatric surgeons who come to Ghana yearly to provide training and free surgery] and they helped me get Abigail’s surgery for free. Before the second surgery, she was sick all the time. But now, she can do anything—running, playing, going to school, fetching water. She never complains about feeling tired or sick.”

Lily Ofori-Amanfo: 18 years, currently attends Senior High School in Kumasi

“Before the surgery, I was very weak. At that time I was attending primary school at Bekwai, but I had to drop out and come back to Humjibre because I was too sick to attend school away from home. My father had taken me to Korle Bu Hospital in Accra and they said I needed surgery, but my father did not have money to pay. My father approached GHEI for help, and GHEI connected him to a sponsor who helped fund the surgery in November 2006. Since then, I don’t struggle to breathe like I did before, and I can do anything my friends can do. Thanks to the surgery, I am now attending a Senior High Boarding School at Kumasi. Currently, I am in my third year, and I am majoring in Business.”



Sabina: 10 years, currently attends DC Primary School in Humjibre

GHEI Program Director, Clement Donkor: “Her parents heard about Abigail’s story and approached me for help after they had taken her to Korle Bu and confirmed surgery was needed. For 2 years, they had been trying to raise the money for surgery to no avail. I connected them with Boston Children’s Team, a team of pediatric surgeons who come to Ghana yearly to provide training and free surgery, and she was able to get the surgery in October 2009. Health-wise she has improved more than any other surgery recipient I have worked with, and her improvement has been very rapid. She is very active now and she has gained weight. I always see her playing with her peers, when I walk home from work.”


Portia Adjei Nipa: 7 years, currently attends Primary School in Dansokrom

GHEI Program Director, Clement Donkor: “For years she suffered bouts of lethargy and difficulty breathing before she was hospitalized in 2008 at Korle-Bu Hospital in Ghana’s capital, Accra, where she received her first surgery. A follow-up surgery was scheduled, and her father tried in vain to fund-raise this money while Portia’s health rapidly declined. She was too weak to walk, talk, or attend school. In October 2010, we were able to connect her with the Boston Children’s Hospital team. Since then, Portia has shown marked improvement: before the surgery, you could never get this child to smile no matter what you did; now, she smiles all the time.”


For more information on Portia’s story, see our earlier post 6-Year Old Receives Life-Saving Heart Surgery.

For more information on GHEI's advocacy efforts, click here

--Natalie Rich, GHEI Communications Director

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