Bridging Connections between Families of Pediatric Epilepsy Patients

“Everything was normal when my son was born, but at one-year-old, he began having seizures; from that moment on, our lives changed. Every six months, his health takes a turn for the worse—he suffers from seizures and pneumonia… He is currently undergoing treatment to prepare for the surgery he needs; I am afraid, but it is the best thing for him.” —Mother of a 5-year-old patient awaiting surgery

The Mission Trip team, including surgeon Dr. Raheel Ahmed, Puente de Solidaridad, and Solidarity Bridge staff, meeting with a former patient and her mother.

Our Pediatric Epilepsy Mission Trip, held twice a year, returned again this past June. The mission trip focuses on surgical treatment for children with drug resistant epilepsy, a treatment option that was not available in public hospitals in Bolivia before our first epilepsy surgical trip in 2023. As some of the youngest patients in our programs, we have operated on babies as young as 11 months up through 13 year-olds. 

This program is quickly expanding as we support our local hospital partner in becoming a national center of excellence for epilepsy care for children and their families. Learn more about our partnership with the Mario Ortiz Suarez Children’s Hospital (MOSCH) in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. 

Meeting with a former patient and his mother.

One of the beautiful experiences of these mission trips is the community they create between families with children awaiting surgery and those whose children have already undergone surgery through this program. Each mission trip is an opportunity to check in on patients and their families who we operated on 6 months previously. So far, our former patients are all experiencing greatly improved quality of life and their families often express deep gratitude and relief for how transformative the surgery is for the entire family. 

The families support each other and give words of encouragement to those awaiting surgery. Many stay in touch and maintain friendships long after the mission trip. Parenting a child with drug resistant epilepsy can be emotionally and financially hard—an often lonely and isolating experience. Many of these young children experience daily seizures, in some cases up to 10-20 per day and families are desperate for solutions. Additionally, there is much social stigma related to the condition. However, the parents of our patients are supportive and caring with each other and create their own type of support group. We treasure the relationships and community that we witness grow and flourish with each mission trip. 

On our June trip, we were able to connect with two patients we operated on in November of 2025 who returned to the MOSCH to visit the Solidarity Bridge team and the Bolivian neurosurgeons and neurologists who helped make their treatment possible. 

13-year-old Daniel came with his mother. Before the surgery she shared with us, “We are afraid of the surgery, but we are even more afraid that he won't be able to lead a normal life; he is very active and likes playing soccer, and he is scared too, but we understand that the surgery is the best thing for him and we trust the doctors who are coming.” 

Trip leader, Lindsay Doucette, and Puente de Solidaridad staff lead a closing ceremony with the mothers of some of our patients.

We are overjoyed to share that since the surgery in November 2025, Daniel has been nearly seizure-free, a remarkable improvement in his quality of life. His parents expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the medical team for providing access to this complex, life-changing procedure.

We also welcomed back 12-year-old Dana and her mother. She is now seizure-free! Dana told us she dreams of becoming a teacher, just like her mom. Her mother also shared that she hopes to partner with us to support other families who may feel afraid or uncertain about epilepsy surgery. 

Stories like these are a reminder of the life-changing impact surgical care can have in a patient's life and that of their whole family. And they remind us that healing happens on many levels and that solidarity permeates all levels of our work. We are overjoyed at the physical transformation of our young patients and for the emotional and social healing that this program has helped foster in their families.  

*The patient names have been changed to protect privacy.