Sunyani-Ghana, Nov. 04, GNA – The family of Mohammed Sulemana a-27-year-old unemployed diagnosed with ‘Valvar Pulmonary Stenosis’ says their inability to raise the US$9,000 for the patient to undergo surgery has left the entire family in a traumatic condition.
Mrs. Abitha Sulemana, 75 years and the mother of Sulemana told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the family had been able to mobilise only GhC1000.00 and appealed to philanthropists and charitable organisations to support them.
The Sunyani Regional Hospital referred Sulemana to the National Cardiothoracic Centre (NCTC), Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, where he was diagnosed with ‘Valvar Pulmonary Stenosis’, a congenital defect of one of his heart valves, which required surgery to repair.
During a visit to the family house at New-Dormaa, a suburb of Sunyani on Thursday, Mrs. Sulemana said the condition of the patient had deteriorated, saying “I don’t want my son to die so tell Ghanaians to come and help us”.
“You can see clearly that Sulemana is going through pains, and we support mobilising the money as soon as possible”, she said.
A letter signed by Dr. Lawrence A. Sereboe, the Director of the NCTC, said Sulemana was referred to the NCTC for “evaluation and management on account of dyspnoea”.
“Clinical evaluation and investigations revealed that he suffers from a severe congenital defect. Further management will involve open heart surgery to repair the defective valve, a procedure termed; open pulmonary valvotomy.”
The 9,000 dollars would cater for the cost of further investigations, surgery, anaesthesia, intensive care and boarding for a maximum period of two weeks, it said.
