Wilson
When Wilson was six months old, the pediatrician in his hometown of Oruro, Bolivia, told his mother, Marlene, that he had a “tiny hole in his heart” that would likely close over time. Marlene diligently took the baby to his regular check-ups to be monitored. When the “tiny hole” persisted beyond Wilson’s second birthday, doctors told his parents he needed surgery. At that point, the Covid-19 pandemic was raging across Bolivia and had infected Wilson’s parents and his 15-year-old sister, causing great hardship for the family that subsisted week-to-week even in the best of times. Wilson’s father and the family’s sole breadwinner, Edson, had just returned to his construction job after recovering from the virus.
Despite all the obstacles, Marlene set out to find the care her son needed. No treatment was available in Oruro, so they took the bus some 145 miles to the nation’s capital, La Paz. Doctors there gave Marlene a quote for the surgery that was far beyond the family’s means. Marlene and Wilson then traveled another 540 miles, to the other side of the country, to see specialists at the Incor hospital in Santa Cruz. Incor cardiologists determined that Wilson’s heart malformation was treatable with a relatively novel and less-invasive catheterization procedure. Fundacor, the foundation associated with Incor, then referred the family to the local office of Puente de Solidaridad for support.
After their long pilgrimage in search of care, Wilson finally underwent surgery on August 27, 2021. The Incor doctors discharged him in good condition the following day, and the family is now reunited in Oruro.