When I visited him in intensive care for the first time, I was really scared, because it was the first time in my life I’d seen so many devices connected to a human being. I wondered what would happen if these devices stopped working, and I asked all the doctors present how they worked, because I didn’t know if my son would come out of there alive once the devices were disconnected. When he came out of intensive care and spoke to me, I burst into tears and hid so he wouldn’t see. It was a miracle for me to see him alive and well again. I immediately took photos to send to the family back in Kankan. For 2 years, Issa had been unable to go to school and could do nothing, the whole family suffered with him and all our savings were used to buy medicine for him. Now all that is over, my family and I are going back to normal.

I’d like to thank everyone who helped make our trip to Dakar and Issa’s operation possible. I’d also like to thank Professor Gabriel Ciss and his team, who performed the operation and regularly reassured me. We were very well received at the Pavillon des Enfants and our stay there went smoothly.