I have definitely failed in the blog department over the past 6 weeks which is unfortunate since so much has happened. But between work, volunteering, applying to law school, fighting off my ever-present sickness, and Christmas festivities, I've had my hands full. But I wanted to write to give you an update on Rejoice and her situation.
In my last blog, I wrote about Rejoice, Pastor Noel, and Ate Luz (his wife) needing money to pay Rejoice's hospital bill (please see previous blog for additional background). I'm happy to report that through the generous donations of friends and family, we were able to pay Rejoice's initial hospital bill and she was able to go home. That was the good news. Unfortunately, as the doctors were unable to diagnose what was causing the bleeding in the first place, shortly after Rejoice returned home, the bleeding started again and she had to return to the hospital. After several tests, the doctors determined that Rejoice has a disease called “Arteriovenous Malformation" or AVM. It is a disease that affects the arteries and veins, causing a malformation in a certain part of a person's body. In Rejoice's case, the location is her jaw. The veins have torn leaving her jaw bone filled with blood. As a result, part of her jaw bone has disintegrated to sustain it. Without treatment, a person suffering from this disease would eventually bleed to death.
The doctors eventually determined that Rejoice’s best option would be to have a permanent embolization to stop the bleeding and repair the veins (google AVM embolization for more information). The procedural doctor’s assistant said that the embolization procedure is 95% successful and has a 30% recurrence rate within the first few months of recovery. So, in other words, there was about a 66% chance that the embolization would be a permanent solution for Rejoice. But because Rejoice had several veins that required the procedure, the initial estimated cost was very high, $12,000 – $16,000. Upon hearing this news and knowing that it would be virtually impossible to come up with such a large amount of money, Pastor Noel and Ate Luz decided that they would keep Rejoice in a less expensive hospital on Bohol, a near-by island, until they were able to afford the procedure. Everyone knew that this decision was tantamount to a death sentence as Rejoice could bleed out in as little as 10 minutes any time her jaw was not properly packed.
On Saturday, December 18, two of our close friends, Matt and Bethany, who have been involved from the beginning, decided to go to the hospital to see what could be done to get Rejoice the help that she needed. After spending over 10 hours talking to doctors and hospital staff, they came up with a plan to have one doctor from the private hospital (the only person in the area who has any experience doing this procedure) do the surgery at a public hospital at a discounted rate. The doctor agreed. They also negotiated with the public hospital to treat Rejoice as a charity case which qualifies her for services at discounted rates. Now, what was going to cost $12,000 -$16,000 would only cost approximately $9,000.
A small group of dedicated people in Cebu were able to scrape together enough cash and credit to temporarily cover the cost of the procedure and the remaining hospital bills. That night, the balance remaining at the private hospital was paid, Rejoice was transferred to a ward in the public hospital, and the procedure was scheduled for the following Monday, December 20th at 3:00pm. By 8pm Monday evening, the procedure had been successfully completed and the doctor was able to use a different method which reduced the cost of the procedure even further. When we visited Rejoice in the hospital after the procedure, she had a new life in her eyes that we hadn't seen before. After a few days of recovery, Rejoice was released from the hospital and is spending Christmas with her extended family.
God truly performed a miracle in Rejoice’s life this Christmas. Only a week ago, I was feeling completely hopeless because I didn’t see how it would be possible for us to raise the money to get Rejoice the procedure that would save her life. But Ate Luz and Pastor Noel continued to pray for God’s provision and trust in God’s faithfulness. Their prayers were answered in the form of individuals who were willing to personally get involved and fight for Rejoice’s life in the face of a seemingly impossible situation. They gave sacrificially of their time and money without any thought of themselves or their own needs. As believers, we are called to bear one another’s burdens. I feel so privileged to be a part of a group of people who truly took on Rejoice’s burden as their own and worked tirelessly to provide for her needs.
While in the hospital, we kept clinging to the words of a familiar Christmas Carol which I will leave you with…
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
(here's a picture of Rejoice a few days after her procedure)
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