From heart surgery to heart art
Scarlett was born in May 2016, the only child of her mother, Jane. Today she is a healthy girl who paints, and one of her paintings hangs in our office.
Scarlett was born on 18 May 2016. For the first few years of her life nobody knew that she had a complex heart problem. She grew, she played and her mother had no reason to think anything was wrong.
In 2020 Jane took Scarlett to TMJ Hospital, where a paediatrician found a serious heart condition. They were referred to the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute for further care. At that stage even the doctors did not yet know how serious the problem was.
Jane found her way to us through friends. One of them knew someone who had heard of The One New Heart Tanzania, and that person put Jane in touch with our mission in Dodoma.
In July 2021, during our first paediatric cardiac surgical mission in Dodoma, we met Scarlett for the first time. She had a diagnostic catheterisation, a test that looks inside the heart. It showed that her condition could be treated with surgery, either in India or in the United States.
Scarlett's heart surgery was carried out in India in November 2022. The operation went well and marked the start of a new chapter for her.
Since the surgery Scarlett has grown into a healthy, lively girl. One of the happiest developments has been her discovery of painting. She has become a confident hand painter and uses her art to express her joy.
Scarlett painted our logo by hand as a gift to The One New Heart Tanzania. For us it says something simple: when a child's heart is treated, the child gets the chance to find out what she loves. You can watch her present the painting in the short video below.
Scarlett was found late, assessed at a mission camp and treated abroad. Every step of that route is one we are working to shorten for the next child, through earlier screening and more treatment inside Tanzania.
Published with the family's written consent.
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