Diego But
07/29/2021 12:45 PM
Clarín.com
Society
Updated 07/29/2021 12:45 PM
The moments that a family from Salsipuedes goes through —40 kilometers north of Córdoba Capital— are
as emotional as they are traumatic
.
Iván, 47, and Miriam, 44, await the recovery of their 4-year-old son Lihuel.
Since he was born, the little boy has undergone five operations;
three, in the last 40 days.
Days in which, due to lack of resources,
his parents were sleeping in a car
, in the parking lot of the Children's Hospital of Córdoba.
Last Friday, while Lihuel was facing his last intervention, Iván and Miriam found out why
The telephone number of a news item that would change, at least for a while, the anguish for joy: Berenice (20), the eldest daughter of the family,
had taken her last exam
to obtain her degree in Criminalistics Technique
with a 10
.
"While her little brother was in the operating room, she took her last subject. It was a pride for us. We had video calls and it was only on Monday night that I was able to leave the hospital for a little while to give him
the hug of every father who feels proud of his daughter
,
despite everything that is happening, "Iván told
Clarín
.
As his tone of voice expresses, the news fell as a strong accolade for the family at a time when they were filled with unease.
And that hug at the beginning of the week served to reinforce the spirits as
Lihuel fights for his life
.
The little boy was born with a heart disease called
Tetralogy of Fallot
, which causes oxygen-poor blood to flow from the heart to the rest of the body.
"At 9 months he was operated on and it turned out very well," says Iván, who with Miriam are also parents of Morena (13).
That intervention required two months of hospitalization.
On August 26, 2019, the boy required a new operation for a
head tumor
.
"It was a very big operation, he spent ten hours in the operating room and, within his recovery, eleven days in a coma," recalls Iván, who was with his wife "three and a half months in the hospital."
Lihuel had to be hospitalized again on June 14 of this year.
"It was a
scheduled surgery
to change a tube that they had put in 2018, because it had been covered by a callus," Iván details.
Although the operation went well, during his recovery they discovered the
torn diaphragm of his right lung
, for which a new surgery was necessary.
The intervention was scheduled for July 12 and went smoothly.
But a few days later, the baby began to suffer a
problem in the mechanical respiratory system
.
In the midst of his grief, Iván explained that his son did not have the strength to breathe on his own.
On Thursday his situation worsened and the next day another surgery was scheduled: a
tracheostomy
was necessary
.
"In 40 days he had three surgeries on his little body and in his four years he has been five,"
laments Iván, who did not move from the hospital for a second, along with his wife, during this month and a half of anxiety.
It is that resources are scarce and the money is not enough to travel from home to the hospital again and again.
"We have visiting hours from 11 to 12 and from 19 to 20. There would be four trips. With tolls and fuel,
it becomes very expensive,
" explained Iván, who does trades for the Salsipuedes cooperative in the area of social services.
The solution he found with his wife to get through the bad time was to sleep in the parking lot of the medical center, inside
a Fiat Palio that a dealership
in the town of Dean Funes
loaned them
.
"We have been like this since June 13. We have blankets and hot water bottles. It had never touched us in winter but
, being our third hospitalization, we are already prepared,
" he says about an unexpected routine that became daily.
For now, no other accommodation alternatives have appeared.
"There is a Ronald McDonald's house next to the hospital, to host parents from the interior, but it is [for those who live] from 50 kilometers.
We cannot enter.
Many single moms come from other provinces who have priority and one understands, "said the man.
"Solidarity box"
The days seem eternal for the couple.
Anyway, Iván
appreciates the solidarity
of the people who came with food and coats.
All donations were shared with other parents who are going through similar situations.
"We put together a little box in the Hospital that we call 'solidarity' and there we leave food and everything that they are giving us, so that they too have the best time," he highlights.
What remains now is to wait for Lihuel's recovery and discharge, although his father clarifies: "We don't know how long it will take."
First, we must wait for the transfer to intermediate therapy.
Afterwards, it will be evaluated if Lihuel requires
permanent oxygen
or a transfer aspirator.
"Once he is discharged, we have to wait for
the government to provide us with these devices
so that we can leave," explains Iván.
Meanwhile, the group of parents spend part of their time in classes in which they are taught the necessary care after a tracheostomy.
The hours pass and
"the phone does not stop ringing," says
Iván.
"It was many people who were concerned and we want to thank," closes the man, waiting for a happy ending that will allow them to return home, reunite with their two daughters and thus be able to toast Lihuel's recovery and graduation from Berenice.
LGP
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