One day, Amelka came back from kindergarten and felt bad. The symptoms resembled “enteritis”. The girl lost consciousness. In the hospital, they connected it to equipment purchased by the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. – The lives of others are in our hands – said the girl five years later, donating all her money to the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, as she does every year.
10-year-old Amelka Kazek from Częstochowa saved money all year long by putting money into a piggy bank. On Sunday, before leaving the house, she counted the money with her parents and grandparents. Then they went to Biegański Square in Częstochowa and the girl threw everything into the cans of the sisters, 4-year-old Natalia and 6-year-old Zosia, who are collecting money for the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity for the second time.
The 33rd Final of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity was underway, and this time it was playing for children's hospital oncology wards. Five years ago, equipment purchased thanks to the orchestra saved Amelka's life.
The girl took a handmade drawing to the finals – It's a heart in her hands – explained the 10-year-old. Where did this idea come from? – Because the lives of others are in our hands. It has a heart in its hands. The girl said that this means that the children's health and lives are in our hands.
Amelka gave the money she had collected over the year to the Great Orchestra of Christmas CharityTVN24
“WOŚP saved my child's life”
The history of Amelka's illness began in January 2020. The girl was 5 years old then and went to kindergarten. It started trivially – with vomiting and diarrhea. My parents thought it might be poisoning or the so-called enterocolitis.
But after a few hours, the child began to lose consciousness. The terrified parents took their daughter to the Emergency Department of the Provincial Specialist Hospital in Częstochowa. There it turned out that Amelka's condition was serious and the child was immediately placed in the pediatric anesthesiology and intensive care unit.
The girl had severe cardiorespiratory failure. She was connected to a respirator purchased by the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity (this is not the only orchestral equipment in this hospital).
A few days later, the child's condition worsened. Then M.D. Magdalena Sieczko-Andryszczak, head of intensive medical care at the Częstochowa hospital, decided that Amelka should be quickly transported to another hospital that has specialized equipment – ECMO.
The girl was transported by helicopter to the Silesian Center for Heart Diseases. There, the child's condition deteriorated dramatically and his heart stopped.
Amelka was saved by equipment with a heartTVN24
On January 16, 2020, Amelka was connected to ECMO. This is an abbreviation for Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation. It is a technique of oxygenating the blood and eliminating carbon dioxide from it. This method can also be used to support circulation. It can be said that it is a kind of prosthesis replacing the function of the lungs or both the lungs and the heart.
The girl spent four days under the apparatus. She survived thanks to a quick diagnosis, cooperation of hospitals and WOŚP equipment. Today, she studies well, dances and paints.
– The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity saved my child's life, because the golden hands of doctors and their good hearts are not enough. You need equipment for this, the one with the heart – Amelka's mother, Anna Kazek, told us.
Amelka: – Throughout the year, before the Christmas aid orchestra arrives, I collect all the money that I receive for my birthday, for example, into a piggy bank. I do it for children who need help like me.
What equipment did WOŚP donate to one hospital in Częstochowa?TVN24
Main photo source: TVN24