 |
Alberto Mendoza sleeps in the Children’s Hospital Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, while four of his biggest fans look on (from left) — Dr. Rubens Pamies of UNMC; Mirla Mesa — wife of major league pitcher Jose Mesa, Juan Mendoza — Alberto’s father, and Kate Christensen — a pediatric intensive care nurse at Children’s Hospital. |
Now, through the Jose Mesa Foundation in his native Dominican Republic, Mesa is providing a different kind of relief.
Thanks to Mesa’s longtime friendship with Rubens Pamies, M.D., vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of graduate studies at UNMC, a 5-year-old boy from the Dominican Republic is in Omaha this week and received a life-saving heart operation at Children’s Hospital on Tuesday.
Support provided by Mesa’s foundation made it possible for Alberto Mendoza to come to Omaha and have the procedure done through collaboration with UNMC and Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Pamies met Mesa when he was working at Case Western Reserve University during the 1990s. Mesa was the closer for the Cleveland Indians at the time and considered one of the hardest throwers in major league baseball. Still playing at age 40, Mesa is pitching this year with his ninth major league team — the Detroit Tigers.
“When I used to live in South Florida, I assisted a couple major league teams during spring training and became friends with several of them,” Dr. Pamies said. “Jose and I became friends when I moved to Cleveland. I met him in 1994 and we hit it off immediately. At first, I helped Jose and his family with health concerns but over the years we became good friends.”
 |
Jose Mesa, shown in this Topps baseball card, used his foundation to help 5-year-old Alberto Mendoza get a lifesaving heart surgery in Omaha this week. |
Mesa contacted Dr. Pamies to determine if any physicians could do the surgery in Omaha, as the complexity of the surgery required a top-notch hospital and surgical team. Dr. Pamies was aware of UNMC’s pediatric cardiac surgeons who perform their surgeries at Children’s Hospital.
He told Mesa that Children’s Hospital was an ideal choice to perform the procedure, as it is a state-of-the-art facility equipped with staff trained in specialized pediatric care and capable of handling sophisticated cases such as Alberto’s.
Dr. Pamies worked with UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., UNMC College of Medicine Dean John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., Gary Perkins, president and CEO of Children’s Hospital, and Kim Duncan, M.D., professor and chief of cardiothoracic surgery at UNMC, to make arrangements to bring Alberto to Omaha.
Dr. Pamies and his wife, Michelle, flew to Tampa, Fla., to meet Alberto and his father, Juan.
“Alberto had obvious shortness of breath and his lips and fingertips had turned blue,” Dr. Pamies said. “It breaks your heart to see a child struggling like this. I have kids of my own. It really brought this home to me. I’m thankful I was in a position to be able to help.”
Neither of the Mendozas can speak English, but fortunately Michelle Pamies can speak Spanish and could communicate with them.
Translating medical information for Spanish-speaking families is a constant necessity at Children’s, and the hospital employs three full-time and four part-time Spanish interpreters, several nurses, respiratory therapists, pediatric residents and others who are capable of providing interpreting assistance for patients and families.
The Pamies and Mendozas returned to Omaha on March 6 and the Mendozas were given a room at the Children’s Hospital Carolyn Scott Rainbow House, which is near Children’s Hospital.
 |
Kim Duncan, M.D., chief of cardiothoracic surgery and professor of cardiothoracic surgery at UNMC, performed the heart surgery on Alberto Mendoza this week. |
“This was an unusual case,” Dr. Duncan said. “Typically, children born with Alberto’s condition undergo surgery in the first two or three months after they are born. It’s rare that a child would make it to age 5 without dying (if they don’t have surgery).
“The biggest risk of the procedure is putting the child to sleep. Their oxygen level really plummets when you give them anesthesia, so it’s really important that you have a skilled anesthesiologist monitoring the situation, like we do at Children’s Hospital. Alberto came through the surgery very nicely and his color immediately returned to normal.”
Dr. Duncan said congenital heart defects requiring surgery occur in 1 in 150 children. He saluted Kim Hissong, M.D., the anesthesiologist who handled Alberto’s case.
Dr. Duncan said he is optimistic that Alberto will be able to lead a normal, healthy life, but he said that Alberto will need to be closely watched by physicians as he continues to grow.
Mesa’s wife, Mirla, came to Omaha to be with the Mendozas for the surgery. She and Jose have six children of their own — four sons and two daughters — so they know full well what families go through when a child is ill.
“We’ve been trying forever for Alberto to have this surgery in the Dominican Republic,” Mirla Mesa said. “Doctors from the United States come to our country every year on missions. They kept pushing the date back for Alberto’s surgery, but they never did it.
“Alberto was so sick that he started having panic attacks. That’s when I called Rubens, and in less than a week, he called me back and said Dr. Duncan would do the surgery. Over the years, Rubens has helped us when the Dominican Republic has had disasters by getting us food and equipment. He is the best. He has such a good heart.”
“It’s wonderful that this story had a happy ending,” Dr. Pamies said. “Our sophisticated health care system here — along with our outstanding surgical team led by Dr. Duncan — allowed us to provide the best possible care for this young man. This was a perfect example of how teamwork can make a difference for people in need. It’s great that the Jose Mesa Foundation and our local institutions were able to make this happen.”