Genesis

Genesis and her Mother

Meet Genesis and her Mother.   She is an eleven year old who was born with a congenital heart defect and a cleft palate.  Her heart defect was repaired when she was an infant by a team from New York.  However there was no team that would repair her cleft palate.  According to her family she is a very good student, but found school difficult due to her speech.  She wants to be a doctor and asked her family once again to bring her to a team that did cleft surgeries.  Normally children with heart defects are considered hig risk, but she had been doing well, had regular check ups with the local cardiologist.  Our pediatrician, Bob McGrath is also a cardiologist and he felt that she was no higher risk than any of the other children we operate on.  Her surgery was done the first day and inspite of some bleeding after surgery she has done well and even this early her mother notices some improvement in her speech.  She will need speech therapy to learn to use her repaired palate, but I am sure she will do well.  At her post op visit she still wants to be a doctor.