Natalia
Gabriela, a young mother of four, approached the offices of Puente de Solidaridad, asking for help to treat her daughter’s heart. At that time, young Natalia was hospitalized at the Children’s Hospital in Cochabamba after suffering an internal hemorrhage and overall weakness. Pediatricians explained that Natalia needed further studies to determine what exactly was affecting her heart. She was referred to a private hospital, since the public system does not have the resources to help patients like Natalia. At Hospital Belga, Natalia was diagnosed with a double lesion in her aortic valve and a minor mitral insufficiency. Her initial treatment involved a catheterization to close the ductus of her heart, but more extensive procedures were required.
Gabriela and her four children live in the rural town of Vinto, close to Cochabamba. They were recently abandoned by the father of the children and Gabriela has found it very difficult to provide for the family. They live in a partially built house that still has no inside or outside walls. Natalia’s condition and costly treatment has made it even more difficult for Gabriela to provide food to all her children. The neighbors are helping them by sharing some of their vegetable harvest. Still, all four children are medically malnourished. With this difficult situation, Gabriela felt helpless to provide for the life-saving surgery that Natalia needed.
Puente de Solidaridad stepped in to help and provide support for the next stage of Natalia’s heart treatment. On April 26, she had surgery to treat her permeable ductus. She is recuperating well and has even gained some weight. Natalia will need open-heart surgery sometime in the future. For now, she is a happy first grader learning to read and write.