For 66-year-old Samoan grandmother Taaitumalo Pula Liva, the thought of returning home to her five children and 10 grandchildren has given her a new sense of hope.
The Taleasiu Uta, Apia resident is recovering after successfully undergoing open-heart surgery at Pacific Specialist Healthcare Hospital in Nadi without a blood transfusion.
PSH says she is the second known Jehovah’s Witness patient to undergo successful heart surgery at the hospital without a blood transfusion, providing encouragement to members of the church across the Pacific.
For Taaitumalo, the successful surgery means another opportunity to spend time with the people she loves most.
The hospital says before the operation, she experienced pain and difficulty breathing, but says those symptoms have now eased.
She says she feels much better and there is no more pain.
Taaitumalo says she placed her trust in Jehovah and the cardiac team at the hospital.
PSH says her surgery was arranged after a doctor in Samoa recommended that she travel to Fiji for treatment.
She says receiving specialised cardiac care in Fiji also meant being relatively close to home.
Taaitumalo says it is like you are at home too because you are in the Pacific.
Her eldest grandchild, Jacinta Leo, who travelled from Papatoetoe in New Zealand, says Taaitumalo was excited about returning home.
Jehovah’s Witness Church Western Division hospital liaison committee member Saoloto Sosene says the successful operation was significant because of the church’s position on blood transfusions.
He says Pacific Specialist Healthcare respected Taaitumalo’s wishes and worked with alternatives to donor blood.
Sosene says they were very respectful, knew their position, the patient's position, and they went along with it.
He says the successful operation would give confidence to Jehovah’s Witness members across the Pacific who require specialised medical treatment while seeking to have their religious beliefs respected.
Dr Sanjeev Khulbey says the surgery presented a unique challenge because Taaitumalo would not accept a blood transfusion.
He says she had severe aortic stenosis, a condition where the aortic valve becomes narrowed and restricts blood flow from the heart to the body.
Dr Khulbey says the surgical team carefully planned the procedure to minimise blood loss.
One technique used was retrograde autologous priming, which uses the patient’s own blood to prime the heart-lung machine instead of relying on external fluids.
He says careful blood-pressure management and meticulous control of bleeding helped maintain Taaitumalo’s haemoglobin, allowing her to recover well without donor blood.
PSH says Taaitumalo is now preparing to return to Samoa, where her five children and 10 grandchildren are waiting to welcome her home.
They add for her, the successful operation means more time with the family she has been longing to see.
