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Burned Boy's Miraculous Recovery |
By PDG Geoff Dainty, ROMAC NZ Director
8 year old Fiji Indian boy Ishraq had frequently watched his father Shan Ali light fires, including when his dad used a little petrol to help. So on 7th May, 2008, when Ishraq's mum and dad and older sister went away one afternoon it was Ishraq's chance to start the outside fire on his own. Ishraq set the firewood, poured on a small amount of petrol and placed the petrol can against the house about 2 meters away. The fire lit straightaway and burned well, sparks flying in the air.
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Unfortunately, one of the sparks landed on the petrol can and it ignited, sending flames up the side of his house. Ishraq saw the dilemma and certainly didn't want to see his house burn, so he grabbed a nearby steel rod and rushed to the can to pull it away from the house. Unfortunately the petrol can fell over sideways and because Ishraq had not secured the lid on tightly, he was engulfed in flames. Ishraq received deep burns to his legs, buttocks and lower body. His face and hands, mercifully had been spared.
Famous Fiji Rugby sevens player, Waisale Serevi, lives next door to Ishraq and was home at the time. Waisale heard Ishraq's screems for help, saw the flames and rushed over to help. Waisale doused the flames threatening the house, contacted Ishraq's parents, then picked the anguished boy up and drove him to the Lautoka Hospital.
Ishraq had suffered deep burns to 30 - 40% of his body. In hospital Ishraq was administered morphine twice daily before taking saline baths followed by SSD cream and plastic film dressings. The morphine made him nauseous and he tended to vomit up a lot of food. He steadily lost weight going from 21kg down to 17kg in six weeks and his white cell count increased because of low grade infection/contamination to his extensive raw area. His situation deteriorated and became serious. Ishraq was likely to die from infection, fluid loss or electrolyte complications if nothing was done.
But lucky for Ishraq, there was an Interplast team sponsored by the Rotary Club of Newmarket, Auckland visiting Lautoka at the time, undertaking charity work. On 25th June, team members John Phillis and surgeon Dr Martin Rees, were asked to look at the burnt boy. Dr Martin was perturbed. Ishraq had become very frail and emaciated and obviously needed immediate IV feeding and skin grafting in a specialist burns unit, something unavailable in Fiji. Dr Martin had successfully solicited help for burns repairs to a young Vanuatu girl, Cloe, some 4 years earlier through a Rotary humanitarian programme, Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children, ROMAC, so he again contacted them.
ROMAC wanted to help but knew that burns treatment could be an ongoing and expensive process. They had a list of over 130 children needing surgical help and while they were prepared to put Ishraq to the top of their list, they still needed a realistic fixed cost, a benevolent surgical team and hospital, and some humanitarian partners who could bear some of the financial burden.
ROMAC sought quotes from a number of hospitals in New Zealand and Australia and received back some unacceptable estimates of costs. They asked the Fiji Government for some financial help, suggesting that some of the annual grant from NZ AID ear-marked for medical assistance to persons not otherwise provided in Fiji, may be utilised to help Ishraq, but a response was politely deferred.
Finally, the Children's First Foundation, CFF, offered some help. CFF has similar goals to ROMAC, both humanitarian programmes identifying children from poverty-stricken lands suffering from debilitating illness, injury or deformity and bringing them to Australia or New Zealand for life saving or profoundly dignity restoring surgery. CFF offered to match dollar for dollar what ROMAC could raise. This was a fabulous offer. ROMAC had a fixed maximum financial exposure for each patient, but knew it could seek additional assistance from the Harold Thomas Trust and also individual Rotary Clubs. So a maximum possible financial cost was established.
Regrettably all the operating quotes from suitable hospitals had exceeded this maximum, so they were each once more approached. Fortunately for Ishraq, the Hutt Hospital, in Wellington came to the party. They benevolently offered to restrict their costs to lie within the ROMAC / CFF budget and so on 7th July the case was officially accepted and approved.
It took over 3 weeks to obtain passports, travel visas to New Zealand and make travel arrangements for Ishraq and his dad. Concern was expressed by Air New Zealand when they learned that burns victim Ishraq would be a travelling passenger with his dad, but finally on 28th July they both boarded a plane at Nadi for travel to Wellington.
Ishraq and Shan were met on the Wellington tarmac by a large group of Rotary, ROMAC and Fijian well-wishers. TV3 and Dominion Post were present for photos and interviewing and Ishraq made the front page of the Post and 6 o'clock TV evening news, public exposure that was to be repeated twice more in the next two months. Ishraq had become a reluctant minor celebrity.
Ishraq was wisked to the Hutt Hospital by Wellingtons Free ambulance Service and Shan was taken by the Rotary Club of Western Hutt and Fiji Indian community to be kindly home hosted.
Ishraq was put onto a feed tube. His body had tried to heal by growing skin from the edges of the wounds, but this was too slow and grafts were essential. On July 30th he spent 3 hours on the operating theatre. Hutt hospital plastic surgeon and burns specialist Jim Armstrong, and a team of anaesthetists and nurses, took a fine layer of skin from the unburnt parts of Ishraq's legs, and a "mesher" was used to spread the skin out "like a string vest" over the burns. The operation went smoothly and he was returned to the hospitals intensive care unit for several days.
Ishraq healed quickly and the hospital staff were marvellous. As Rotary District Governor Tony Fryer said "I am very impressed with Ishraq's recovery and the care and thought that the Hutt hospital team are displaying - not just his clinical care, but also with regards to longer term. He is shortly to be moved to the children's ward and will receive visits/counseling from their children's psychologist to prepare his return to Fiji (they are worried re the impact of him returning to his home environment after his somewhat special status in NZ - apparently he is glued to TV)."
On the 17th August Ishraq was taken from the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital and on 5th August, was discharged from the Hutt Hospital, but didn't go far. He spent the next three weeks with his dad at Pilmuir House Hostel, the old nurses home on the hospital grounds, so that physiotherapy and outpatient treatment could continue.
Again Ishraq progressed well. He had many visits from PK Mishra, President of the Rotary Club of Western Hutt, and from other Rotarians and local Indian community members, from Jean Jones of CFF and Dr Eric Horne and Greig Mercer from ROMAC. He also enjoyed particular interest from TV3 and the Dominion Post as he progressed to full health.
After a period of almost 9 weeks in Wellington, on Sunday 21st September, Ishraq left with his dad for a short stay in Auckland before returning home to Lautoka. He had progressed well and his burns had healed beautifully
While in Auckland Ishraq was also able to re-visit, Dr Martin Rees, the Auckland Surgeon who was responsible for finding Ishraq in such a distressed state in the Lautoka Hospital, and for initiating the recovery. Dr Martin expressed thanks to all those who had helped and believed that without the charity work of the huge team involved, including ROMAC, Rotary, CFF and the Harold Thomas Trust, Ishraq's injuries would have claimed his life.
He was also able to visit fellow ROMAC patient, Veronica Tilman, a young 14 year old patient from Timor, who was recovering after receiving extensive surgery to both her deformed club feet. Veronica had been in New Zealand for over 6 months and was pleased to share experiences.
Ishraq's bandages had now been removed and he had been given a "burns Jacket" to use for the next few months. This would prove to be a real hardship especially with a hot Fijian summer approaching, but Ishraq was happy because he won't need to go to school until next year. Ishraq was further instructed to wear two leg splints for at least 12 hours per day, including at night. The splints restrict the movement of his knees and prevented the burns opening up in the most used locations.
Ishraq and his father arrived home on Sunday 5th October to a tremendous welcome. His grateful mother and grandparents were present along with rugby great Waisale Serevi. There were tears and rejoicing because Ishraq had put on 5kgs in weight, was walking upright and was so handsome and happy.
The Lautoka hospital will keep an ongoing watch over Ishraq and it is hoped that he won't need to travel back to New Zealand for any further surgery. It is expected that he will recover fully and everyone looks forward to a full and active future for a lucky little burns boy.
