Loboc, Bohol – Young couple Maria Lyn and Bernard Ray had just started to a build their small family when they were gifted with a bundle of joy on June 5,2021 and named her Maliah Lennessei Jacalan.
According to the parents, Maliah was not a sickly baby until 6 months after she was born, Typhoon Odette lashed the province of Bohol and got the family of 3 drenched in heavy rains while taking refuge on a rooftop. Shortly after, Maliah started to have respiratory issues and was diagnosed with pneumonia. This was followed by a series of every one to two months hospital admissions due to recurrence of shortness of breath and lingering coughs. The young parents went seeking for a proper diagnosis from one medical professional to another that could explain Maliah’s frequent bouts of respiratory problems.
On August 2023, with Maliah’s another round of hospital admission, the doctor who attended to her, heard a heart murmur1. She was then conclusively diagnosed with Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA)2 where in Maliah’s case, the extra blood vessel of her heart stayed open causing blood to flow to her lungs, and hence, the symptoms she has been experiencing.
Finally knowing Maliah’s heart condition put a tinch of ease to her parents worries, but as they had never expected that something like this would happen to their little girl, they were pained and were now faced with surge of agonies because getting their daughter treated would be like squeezing water from a stone as they were struggling with a meek income. Still, the parents continued to look for ways and exhausted all efforts in search of a hospital facility that would operate on Maliah however, even as they had gone to hospitals in Cebu, there is a long queue to get a surgery schedule and this kind of uncertainty agitates them even more as they were told to give the Philippine Heart Center in Manila a try. “Money can be earned, but our daughter has only one shot at life. We will do everything so she can live this life” Maria Lyn, Maliah’s mother sobbing painfully while she recalls her daughter’s plight.
Desperately seeking help, a friend of Maliah’s parents who is a Tzu Chi Bohol scholar referred the family and turned to Tzu Chi (Bohol Office) for assistance. The family came to Manila and Tzu Chi connected them to Philippine Heart Center’s Dr. Ma. Bernadette Azcueta whom Tzu Chi Bohol regularly refers its heart patients to.
On February 13,2024, the Jacalan’s met and consulted with Dr. Azcueta. The doctor thoroughly and clearly explained to them about the child’s congenital heart disease and since she is seen to be in a phase where it is still safe to treat the PDA, Dr. Azcueta recommended an immediate procedure wherein a catheter will just be inserted into Maliah’s vein to deploy a device that will block the open extra blood vessel, a more advance technique that is less invasive instead of the usual close heart surgery.
Maliah underwent the procedure on February 21,2024 and the next day, when Tzu Chi volunteers visited her, she was in her old jolly and energetic self, only with a splint and bandage wrapped around her left arm. “When we see them (babies) start to smile (after the procedure), blue babies turn to pink, (you know) they are okay. This is so much compensation for us doctors taking care of them more than anything else, because we know at the back of our minds, we are giving them a new lease of life and they would be of help to us in the future,” said Dr. Azcueta.
Even with Tzu Chi’s assurance that it will be able to help Maliah, the parents, especially Maliah’s paternal grandmother, Belen, actively sought additional sources to fund for Maliah’s heart procedure and in an unexpected turn of outcomes, Tzu Chi did not need to pay for the hospitalization and the costly procedure. Belen was able to secure fundings from several non-profit organization and government institutions to cover for the entire hospital bill. “I know that so many people are coming to Tzu Chi for help, and what Tzu Chi saved from Maliah’s procedure can be given to help others in need instead. Tzu Chi has connected us to a good doctor and getting Maliah to undergo the procedure immediately is already an immense help to us as I have witnessed several other patients here waiting for months and even years to get a surgery schedule. We are grateful and so much blessed for this alone” said Belen while tears of triumphant bliss run through her face.
A few days after the procedure, Dr. Azcueta cleared Maliah and can now go home. With an unbridled joy in their hearts, the Jacalan’s had a homecoming on February 29,2024. Tzu Chi volunteers, staff, and Barangay Ondol officials warmly welcomed Maliah and her family back home with a simple celebration of the toddler’s renewed lifeline.
The strength, resilience, and support that Maliah’s parents and grandmother endured lead to overcoming Maliah’s health threat. The toddler may not remember this phase in her life, but as long as Tzu Chi continues to bridge the connection, it will undoubtedly shape the foundation of her character, instilling in her a deep sense of gratitude and compassion as she grows healthily into adulthood.
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1 sounds such as whooshing or swishing – made by rapid, choppy or turbulent blood flow through the heart, retrieved from MayoClinic.org
2 Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA) is an extra blood vessel found in the heart of babies before and after birth that should normally close on its own in the first few days of their life, retrieved from kidshealth.org
