Two-year-old girl in Deli Serdang suffers a congenital heart defect, needs a helping hand
Two-year-old Arisha Zainabba Nasution from Deli Serdang is fighting a critical stage of a congenital heart defect. She is the daughter of Zulfikar Nasution (32) and Rohana Boru Barus (30), and has been diagnosed with a perimembranous inlet–outlet ventricular septal defect with mild-to-moderate pulmonary hypertension. The condition causes fluid build-up and excessive blood flow, increasingly affecting her lungs.
Since birth, Arisha has struggled to breathe normally. Because of the large ventricular septal defect, she often experiences shortness of breath at night, so her parents must keep oxygen cylinders at home.
In addition, Arisha’s activities are hindered by the need to use a nasogastric tube to feed specially prepared milk, as she frequently regurgitates what she drinks, making weight gain difficult.
According to examinations by a paediatric cardiologist at RSUP H. Adam Malik Medan and a children’s heart hospital in Jakarta, the ideal operation to close the defect should have been performed before Arisha turned two. However, financial constraints meant the parents could only bring her to Jakarta now.
‘For almost two years, we have sought treatment and only now can we take her to Jakarta,’ said her father Zulfikar when contacted on Wednesday (20/5).
Zulfikar works as a casual day labourer at a soap factory in Patumbak, earning at a level roughly equivalent to the local minimum wage for Deli Serdang. His wife focuses on caring for Arisha, who requires constant supervision day and night.
Although the main treatment and operation costs have been covered by BPJS Kesehatan, the family, living in Dusun II, Desa Lantasan Lama, Patumbak District, Deli Serdang Regency, North Sumatra, says they are overwhelmed meeting other necessities. The travel ticket to Jakarta was obtained with help from relatives and donors.
They still need a helping hand to cover costs not covered by BPJS for at least three months of treatment in Jakarta, including accommodation for the mother and two escorts during the preparation and post-operative period, as well as nutrition and medical supplements such as specialised formula milk, diapers, vitamins, fluids-draining medicines, and emergency oxygen supplies. They also require daily routine check-ups and return travel to North Sumatra for Arisha and her escort.