When Healing is a Journey
By Mary McCann Sanchez
At age 19, Rimer had chosen his professional pathway. A second-year university student in Bolivia, he was committed to achieving a four-year degree as a registered, licensed nurse. He waited tables to make it happen. In his free time he played traditional Bolivian pan flute in a folkloric Andean group. He harnessed the energy of other youth through the fusion of rock music with his Andean roots and formed a new band.
Rimer’s life, however, took a turn when he suffered three seizures within eight months. His family sought medical assistance. Diagnosis required CAT scans, magnetic resonance imaging and an angiogram. He traveled within his country to access the tests and achieved a diagnosis of arteriovenous malformation (AVM), a dangerous entanglement of blood vessels in the brain. Unfortunately the financial cost of surgical treatment, only available in Bolivia in a private hospital, was prohibitive for the family.
Neurosurgeon Dr. Nirav Patel and surgical technician Carlos Vazquez explained the procedure to Rimer before surgery.
Rimer’s medical journey quickly became international. A friend of his aunt in Cochabamba knew of a neurosurgeon in Paraguay who was training with an American cerebrovascular neurosurgeon to perform the complex operation. The training was part of a “Stroke and Cerebrovascular Initiative” of the Neurosurgery and Neurology Institute (NNI), a program of Solidarity Bridge. Dr. José Kuzli, the chief of neurosurgery at the Hospital Nacional de Itauguá in Paraguay, offered Rimer the opportunity to be included at no cost in the upcoming training mission organized by the NNI.
Rimer’s family acted quickly, organizing a festive fundraiser of Bolivian food and drink in a local plaza to fund their travel to Paraguay. Friends promoted the fundraiser via social media and Rimer’s musical community provided entertainment. Strengthened by this show of support, the parents organized care for their other children who would remain home. Rimer’s mother, father, aunt, and a friend then embarked with him overland to Paraguay.
The journey was arduous. The family traveled by local bus to local bus to the border of the two countries. Once their paperwork was approved to enter Paraguay, they carried their suitcases across the border, only to learn that there was no public transportation to continue the journey.
Undaunted, the family explored their options. They spoke with travelers and drivers in a long queue of trucks and vehicles in an otherwise desolate frontier. A breakthrough occurred when a driver and his friend offered them rides to a safe location where they could resume their journey. One of the drivers empathetically gave Rimer a cell phone chip for Paraguay, a surprising gift of connection. After a day and night of travel, Rimer was admitted to the hospital and his family welcomed into a shelter on the hospital grounds.
Rimer’s family gathered on the lawn outside the hospital with missioners Lindsay and Mary to share a joyful prayer of gratitude for Rimer’s successful brain surgery.
This week I have been privileged to accompany the medical team and Rimer’s family as their son underwent successful surgery, received ICU care, and began his initial recovery. The medical team also discussed with the family the plans for their safe return home and Rimel’s follow-up care back in Bolivia.
Danitza, Rimer’s mother, shared her trust in the skills of the medical team and her conviction that the surgery will not only heal the AVM but will rebuild her son’s sense of self after his frightening encounters with seizures and the unknown. “Given this experience and the overwhelming show of solidarity,” she said thoughtfully, “I am certain Rimer will continue his studies and become a compassionate nurse who will see suffering, care, and recovery through a special lens.”