Day 1 King Faisal

Today as the US team begins their work week, we are delighted to have our first patient roll though the door from the operating theater. Fourteen years old, extubated shortly after arrival, and asking for water as soon as his lips were free, we have high expectations that the significant mitral regurgitation of this young man will be corrected and he can return to complete his education. Our champion first shift in the ICU, Connie, Dominic and Kristin, make it look easy as they admit him and keep him safe and comfy. We are so happy to benefit from the additional expertise of David from La Crosse, WI, back with us to lead the ICU team.

Jim Dixon, on loan from Healing Hearts of Northwest has been working non-stop providing biomedical support and each time I see him he has a wrench in his hand. Gita works tirelessly to secure all of the necessary pre-op lab values that secure patient's places on the schedule. The list is a living, breathing entity, ever-changing as new information is discovered and necessary changes are made. All of the procedures and labs that we take for granted in the US certainly don't just show up in the computer at 6 am! The best thing about today, amid the sheer chaos, is how absolutely everyone has come together to make it work. We aren't called Team Heart for nothing!

As always, patient visitors from years past serve to reiterate why we are here and brighten our days as we hunker down for this sure-to-be-trying two weeks. But as we've already gotten a couple of smiles from our first patient, I'd say our outlook is definitely positive.