BCH Nurse helps start African Heart Hospital for Children

Suzan’s Story

“It was like going back into the dark ages.” That’s how nurse Suzan Miller-Hoover described her month-long odyssey through poverty stricken regions of Ethiopia where she worked hand-in-hand with fellow medical professionals to bring urgently needed heart care to local youth by opening Africa’s first children’s heart hospital. Since heart-related aliments and disorders are among the leading causes of death in this region of the world, this action has occurred none-to-soon.

Miller-Hoover has worked in pediatric intensive care and pediatric cardiology for 33 years.  The last five have been with Banner Children’s Hospital in Phoenix. While she doesn’t have her own kids (she has four dogs and a husband), the care of children has always been her passion. She recently became an important part of the 30 year-old dream of Dr. Belay Abegaz, the only pediatric cardiologist in Ethiopia. His mission was to open the first children’s heart hospital on the continent of Africa, a dream that has come to fruition through the volunteer efforts of people like Suzan.

Still, she is not done. Miller-Hoover hopes to return to Ethiopia over the coming months – perhaps staying as long as six months – offering care and hope to desperate families and their children. To truly gauge the compassion of those involved consider:

• Some use their vacation time to travel thousands of miles and help others in distant, desolate parts of the world
• Some spend their own money – or held fund-raising events – to obtain the funds to make this dream come true
• Some skip Christmas presents and asked friends and neighbors to instead invest in those in the most of need

Three organizations came together to make it happen; Chain of Hope in England, Healing the Children in Phoenix and the Children’s Heart Fund of Ethiopia.  The first two organizations bring children to England and Phoenix for surgeries and wanted to help the country perform some of the procedures on their own.

Suzan’s journey began when she was contacted by Healing the Children in July 2008.  It culminated with a month-long trip to Ethiopia to train 24 new nurses in the field of intensive care and cardiology in October and with a follow-up trip to assist with the hospital’s opening in February.

In December, she and her fellow nurse, Emily Schmitt, asked friends and family to skip Christmas presents and donate to the hospital instead.  The two raised $2,600 and had uniforms made for all of the nurses.  They also bought reference materials with the money they raised.  All equipment has been donated.  Suzan’s husband was worried about her making the trip at first, but has been completely supportive and was pleased when he learned how well she was treated.

“It was like going back into the dark ages, mixing IVs and medication by hand,” said Miller-Hoover.  “Everyone brought their own equipment, so you’re surrounded with modern devices, but having to do things the old fashioned way.”

Suzan would like to go back as often as possible.  She is hoping for an opportunity to stay for six months to help build the hospital’s infrastructure.  She and other volunteers have used their vacation time to go to Ethiopia.  The hospital is looking for doctors and nurses who are able to take a week or two at a time off to travel there to help.  The first five surgeries were done by a doctor from Phoenix on January 12.  Those five children were special guests at the opening ceremonies in February along with the President of Ethiopia and Sheik Mohamed.

She said that the doctors and nurses that she trained are eager to learn the right way to do things.  They want nothing more than to succeed and considered her a guest in their country.  Nurses at the hospital make the equivalent of $100 per month and were required to speak English for training purposes.

The hospital has 12 ICU beds and 20 ward beds and is dedicated to children.  A research center focusing on rheumatic fever is another project Dr. Belay hopes to someday achieve.  Rheumatic fever is a leading cause of heart defects in the country.

Submitted on behalf of Banner Children’s Hospital
Banner Children’s Hospital at Banner Desert Medical Center provides comprehensive pediatric care from general pediatrics and intensive care to a dedicated pediatric emergency department and specialized services for specific childhood diseases.

Technorati Tags: Africa, Banner Children's Hospital, Banner Desert Medical Center, Chain of Hope, Children's Heart Fund, Dr. Belay Abegaz, Emily Schmitt, Ethiopia, Healing the Children, Suzan Miller-Hoover