Photo By Sgt. Amanda White | Mahmood Amer Hamad, 8, peeks out shyly from behind his father's back at the 5th...... read more read more
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By Spc. Amanda Morrissey
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
AL TINA, Iraq – There are certain expectations U.S. Soldiers have when they go "outside the wire" to conduct missions in Iraqi villages around their military bases. Stumbling across the opportunity to save a child's life is generally not one of those expectations.
The 5th Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment medical team, led by Capt. Abel Alfonso, the battalion surgeon, has been given that opportunity to help in Mahmood Amer Hamad, an eight-year-old boy with a heart defect.
"When I came here, the prior battalion surgeon had found out about this boy," Alfonso explained. "He had tried to get Mahmood examined in Mosul, but they didn't have the proper equipment there. That's when I came in and made the arrangements to have cardiologists come here to see the boy."
About 10 months ago, the critical case was discovered by 1st Battalion, 37th Field Artillery Regiment Soldiers. Since then, the 5/82nd FAR has taken up the cause to get Mahmood the medical attention he needs in order to live.
"The American Soldiers came to our village, and I told them about my son," said Amer Hamad Randan, Mahmood's father. "I asked them to help Mahmood, and they told me they would help."
Alfonso contacted Maj. Todd Villines, a cardiologist, and Maj. Ted Koutlas, a cardiac surgeon, both with 399th Combat Surgical Hospital at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq. They flew to FOB Qyayyarah with a portable echocardiogram machine in order to examine Mahmood and conduct the necessary tests to determine the severity of Mahmood's heart defect.
"Mahmood has a ventricle sepal defect, which is an abnormal connection between the right and left ventricles of the heart," said Villines. "It's like a leak from one side of the heart to the other that puts a strain on the right ventricle. If left uncorrected, it would likely over time lead to permanent heart damage, then heart failure and early death.
"However, if it's caught early enough, he can lead a normal life," Villenes added. "That's what is so gratifying about coming here and treating this little guy. We can really make an impact on his future."
Mahmood and his father arrived early Monday morning at FOB Qyayyarah for the tests. Small for his age, Mahmood held on to his father's hand tightly, shying away from the men in uniforms who towered over him.
Unaware of the importance of the occasion, Mahmood cried his way through the procedure, living in anticipation of a child's worst fear – a shot. Fortunately for him, immunizations were not on the schedule for the day's events. Instead, the doctors did an echocardiogram, which is an ultrasound used to determine the exact size and location of the hole in Mahmood's heart.
"It's important to know how big the hole is, where it's located, what direction the fluid is moving through the hole, and if he has any early signs of heart enlargement," Villines said. "We really need the ultrasound to guide what kind of surgery we would have to do, and ensure that he didn't already have such severe damage to his heart that surgery would be unsafe."
The doctors were optimistic about the results of the tests they conducted. While it was confirmed that Mahmood did indeed have a hole in his heart, they concluded that he is a perfect candidate for corrective surgery.
"He doesn't have severe enlargement of his heart or severe heart damage, he's fairly young, and he's at a stage where we can correct this and it'll improve how his heart works now," Villines said.
The next step is to arrange for the surgery itself, which presents Alfonso with a new set of challenges. The biggest hurdle to overcome is finding the means to funding the procedure, as well as the costs associated with travel and accommodations.
One of the options is to send Mahmood to Amman, Jordon, to get the procedure done. However, that would cost approximately $10,000, which is prohibitive, said Alfonso. Another idea is to send Mahmood to the United States.
"I do probably about 12 to 15 charity cases a year back home, and I'd certainly be glad to operate on him," Koutlas said. "We work with a program called Samaritan's Purse, and it sponsors kids from different countries. I've operated on kids from Mongolia, Bosnia, and Honduras. I'm sure they'd be willing to help us operate on Mahmood."
While ideal, this option presents its own challenges. While the costs of the treatment itself would be taken care of, there is still the matter of funding the plane tickets for Mahmood and a guardian. There is also the matter of determining who would make the trip with the boy, while caring for his nine brothers and sisters still in Iraq.
Despite the logistical obstacles faced by the 5/82nd medical team, they are optimistic and determined to bring about a positive outcome for this child.
By the end of the exam, Mahmood realized that the dreaded shot is not going to happen and was busy exchanging high-fives with his new friends. Charmed by his smile, Alfonso gave the boy a few pieces of candy as a reward for being such a trooper, and handed over two bottles of children's vitamins to his father as the pair prepared to leave.
"There are lots of kids out there who need help," Alfonso said. "We can't save the world, but we can make a difference in the life of one kid, and that makes it all worthwhile."
| Date Taken: | 05.30.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 05.30.2007 09:11 |
| Story ID: | 10564 |
| Location: | IQ |
| Web Views: | 206 |
| Downloads: | 130 |
This work, U.S. Soldiers Give Iraqi Boy the Chance of His Lifetime, by SGT Amanda White, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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