Update on NOVA patient: Dave

Below is the story of Baby Dave, a child who came to the NOVA clinic in February 2013 suffering from severe malnutrition.  Dave has been receiving check ups by Dr. Altenord, NOVA’s physician in Haiti, at our clinic in Boileau.  His grandmother brought him to NOVA’s volunteer team at our May 2014 Medical mission to show us his progress.  He is doing great!

Here are photos of baby Dave taken May 2014.  This is what’s possible when our volunteers and our staff in Haiti work together to provide healthcare to the people of Cavaillon.

Original post about baby Dave from February 2013:

One of the highlights of our last medical mission to Haiti was a pediatric patient named Dave.  Dave, a 4 month old infant, was brought to the clinic on our first day by his aunt.  At 6 lbs, Dave weighed less at 4 months than an average newborn baby.  Dave’s mother, who had been a patient at the clinic last year when she found out she was pregnant, passed away from breast cancer when Dave was 1 month old.  Dave and his 5 siblings were being cared for by his aunt, who also had her own children to care for, and they could not find a wet nurse or afford formula for the baby, who was being fed water and crackers.

At the clinic, we placed an IV and gave fluids for hydration.  We also fed Dave some oral rehydration solution with a syringe, which he devoured because he was so hungry.  We gave his aunt some oral rehydration solution and vitamins and counseled her to use boiled water for Dave.

After speaking about this case with the team, our team leader, Joe Nuzzi, arranged for our group to buy formula for Dave at a local store and make a home visit to check on Dave and deliver the formula and additional vitamins.  On our last day in Haiti, the physician, nurse, and translator team who cared for Dave were able to visit Dave’s home, check on him, and meet his extended family, including 4 generations living in a 3-room house.  It was a great opportunity to be able to provide formula for the next few months in hopes that Dave will start to thrive until he can eat solid foods.  It was also a great chance for the team to observe how our patients live their daily lives in Cavaillon, Haiti.

Dave will be followed up at NOVA’s clinic in Boileau to make sure he does OK.

Dr. Joni Rabiner
NOVA volunteer January 2013