When Araceli Cantero Obregón was seven months pregnant, doctors in Nicaragua told her that her son Edgard Sequeira would have hydrocephalus, a condition in which excess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) builds up within the ventricles of the brain. She was also advised that they identified spina bifida, which occurs when a baby’s spinal cord fails to develop properly in the womb.

Despite the heartbreaking news, Obregón was not going to give up on her first-born son, who she welcomed into the world on September 6, 2007. By the time Edgard turned one, he had undergone surgery for both conditions. The procedures allowed the family a sense of normalcy for a few years, but the young boy continued to face medical setbacks and personal hardships.

Throughout his childhood, Edgard was not developing physically or cognitively. He also was experiencing complications with his bladder and kidneys. Furthermore, Obregon began noticing her son was lacking energy. He was isolated from his friends and had occasional seizures.

In 2016, pediatricians in Nicaragua ran tests and gave Obregon frightening news — her son was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and would need to start dialysis immediately. Edgard was also suffering from high blood pressure. The diagnosis was an all too familiar red flag for Obregón, who had lost her husband to CKD two years prior.

“It was traumatic to hear my son was suffering from the same disease that took my husband,” Obregón said. “My whole world was falling apart.”

After years of attempts with no sustainable treatment, Obregón desperately sought the care of pediatric nephrologists at Holtz Children’s Hospital, leaving Nicaragua for the U.S. in February 2020.

When Edgard arrived at Holtz Children’s, he was malnourished, weighing 50 pounds at 12 years old. After a thorough examination, his team of nephrologists determined he needed intervention in urology, nutrition, and blood pressure care before he could be listed on the national transplant waiting list. He would also need to continue receiving dialysis four times a week while being monitored by the pediatric transplant team at the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI).

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the family was also faced with the decision of having to stay in Miami long-term. For Edgard to have a fighting chance, Obregón knew the best decision was to stay in South Florida and make sure her son completed his treatments.

Thanks to the help and financial support of family, friends, and Miami’s Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Edgar and Obregon were able to stay in the U.S. and continue with Edgar’s care.

Over time, Edgard, now 14, had breakthroughs in his health, and last October, he was listed on the national transplant list. Five days after her son was listed, Obregón received the call from MTI that they were ready to perform the life-saving procedure.

The successful kidney transplant was led by Mahmoud Morsi, MD, and a multidisciplinary team at Holtz Children’s.

“I am eternally grateful to everyone, the social workers, the nurses, the nephrologists, the Holtz team, the MTI team, and so many others who have become a part of our family,” Obregón said. “There is no way to repay them for giving my son a chance to have a better quality of life.”

For the care team, miracle stories like these also remind them of their life’s calling as medical professionals.

“It’s a gift for them, and it’s a gift for us,” said UHealth pediatric nephrologist Jayanthi Chandar, MD. “It gives us a sense of fulfillment and happiness to see our patients thrive and witness extraordinary changes in their mental, emotional, and physical state.”

When Patricia Fusco and Katrina Wegmann were in high school, Patricia shared that she would not be able to carry and birth her own children. Unbeknownst to Patricia, Katrina decided then that if she was able to when the time came, she would be a surrogate for her friend.

Little did they know that more than 20 years later, not only would they still be close friends, but their husbands would also be best friends. And when Patricia and her husband, Andrew, had trouble finding a surrogate, Katrina stepped up.

Katrina, who already had two children of her own, expected it would be “another easy pregnancy and it would be able to make them a family.”

The pregnancy turned out to be anything but easy. Twelve weeks into her pregnancy, Katrina’s blood pressure was high — something she’d never experienced before, causing the pregnancy to be considered “high risk.”

Turning to Jackson for High-Risk Care
As the pregnancy progressed, Patricia, a senior specialist for community outreach and events at Jackson Health System, asked Katrina to consider meeting with the Maternal Fetal Medicine team at Jackson Health System. Every year at work, Patricia plans multiple events, including the NICU reunion, where babies who were saved and cared for at the Holtz Children’s Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) are reunited with their medical teams.

“I know that Jackson treats over 50 percent of South Florida’s high-risk pregnancies and that the Holtz Children’s Hospital NICU is one of the largest and best in the nation,” she said. “Working at Jackson, I hear the miracle stories all the time. But you never think you’re going to be one of those miracle stories.”

Katrina and Patricia immediately felt comfortable and confident in the Jackson team. They were followed by Jackson Medical Group physicians, Dana L. Homer III, MD, FACOG, an OB/GYN, and Felipe Tudela, MD, FACOG, an OB/GYN and maternal fetal medicine specialist.

Patricia called Tudela “a gift to his profession.”

“He’s probably the best doctor I have ever had the pleasure of meeting,” she said. “Everyone on the team invests themselves wholeheartedly in each patient’s case.”

When Katrina was 23 weeks pregnant, she suffered from terrible headaches, and her blood pressure was extremely high. She was admitted to the hospital and told she would need to remain there on bed rest to try to prevent an early delivery. That meant a possible two-to-three-month hospital stay – a stressful complication since she had two small children at home. Later they would confirm she had preeclampsia, a potentially dangerous pregnancy complication associated with high blood pressure.

A Difficult Choice
Two weeks later, a routine ultrasound showed that the baby was not growing and there was concern with the placenta, which was no longer providing critical nutrition to the baby. Dr. Tudela told them to consider delivering the baby early because he did not know if the baby would survive otherwise. Patricia, Katrina, and their husbands came together to make the difficult decision.

“That was a terrifying day for us, probably one of the most emotional days,” Patricia said. “Ultimately, we trusted the Jackson NICU enough that we preferred to deliver him then, rather than seeing what could happen if we tried to keep him in utero.”

On May 27, 2021, at 25 weeks and five days gestation, Joseph Patrick, nicknamed JP, was born weighing just 1 pound 4 ounces. Quickly, doctors told the Fuscos that they made the right choice as there was no more amniotic fluid in the sac, and the baby would not likely have survived if they had waited.

As soon as the Fuscos saw their baby in the NICU, they felt more at ease.

“When we saw him, I thought, ‘they’ve got this,” Patricia said. “Once he was stable in the NICU, things began to feel safe. And every step of the way from that day forward, the doctors, nurses, therapists, everyone at every level always kept us abreast of what was going on.”

The NICU Village
JP thankfully had no brain bleeds and a fairly smooth ride in the NICU, with some breathing complications and an unknown infection during his stay. He remained in the NICU for 123 days.

“They say it takes a village [to care for a child], and I can wholeheartedly say there is no better village than the NICU village at Holtz Children’s,” Patricia said.

During JP’s stay, Patricia and Andrew said they were a part of every conversation regarding his care and the nurses became their friends, confidants, and teachers.

In addition to the expert and compassionate care that both Katrina and JP received, Patricia said she is grateful that everyone at Jackson treated their uncommon situation as if it were an everyday occurrence.

“We had a unique situation because we were high-risk. It was also unique because it was a surrogacy, and we were two friends going through this together,” Patricia said. “We know that our situation is not common. It definitely is not something they see every day. But every single physician, every single healthcare worker, never batted an eye at us. Everyone treated the experience with understanding and compassion. I don’t know if that would have been the case at another hospital.”

In September, after a nearly four-month NICU stay, JP was able to go home.

“It was a relief to finally be able to walk out of those doors with our son,” Patricia said. “It felt like an accomplishment.”

A Special Bond
JP continues to grow and thrive but is closely monitored by doctors and specialists to make sure he’s developing and that no more complications arise. Patricia and Andrew are now enjoying what they call a more “normal” stage of parenting.

“We’ve already seen him grow from a fragile 1-pound infant to a robust, beautiful baby boy,” Andrew said. “Now I’m looking forward to watching him hit those milestones, not only growth and developmental milestones but the little kid moments that define a childhood.”

And Katrina is happy that she will be there to witness it all. While they still need to be careful about visits due to the pandemic, the families are closer than ever.

“I talk to my kids about JP all the time, and they can’t wait to spend time with him. I look forward to them growing up together,” she said.

The experience “intertwined” the families forever, Patricia said.

“We are eternally grateful to her,” she said. “There are no words or ways we could ever adequately repay or thank her for what she has given us.”

In December 2020, Daniel Furlong, a former urology resident at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and his wife, Sarah, were packing for their babymoon trip – four months before the expected arrival of their first child – when suddenly, Sarah began to experience uterine cramps.

The couple immediately rushed to The Women’s Hospital at Jackson Memorial, where doctors determined Sarah was in preterm labor. She remained hospitalized for observation, but the baby just couldn’t wait.

On December 30, 2020, with the help of Rachel Franklyn, MD, Jackson Medical Group associate medical director of obstetrics and gynecology, Sarah gave birth to a baby boy at nearly 25 weeks. Ryder, who weighed just 1 pound, 10 ounces, was immediately rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Holtz Children’s Hospital. He remained intubated in the NICU for two months and had to overcome several medical setbacks, including pneumonia and brain bleeds, which caused him to have several seizures.

Ryder was also diagnosed with a condition called patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), an opening between the two major blood vessels leading from the heart that normally closes shortly after birth. He underwent a PDA ligation procedure, performed by Eduardo Alfonso Perez, MD, a University of Miami Health System pediatric surgeon, to correct the birth defect.

“He had to overcome so many medical challenges in the NICU that his medical team began calling him ‘Ryder the fighter’,” his father, Dr. Furlong, recalled.

When Dr. Furlong wasn’t tending to his patients, he was at his son’s bedside. Due to COVID-19 visitation restrictions, he and his wife took turns visiting Ryder.

“As a physician, I struggled with knowing too much and trying to relay that information to my wife without scaring her while being honest with her about Ryder’s progress,” Dr. Furlong said.

Last May, after spending 125 days in the NICU, Ryder was finally able to go home. The Furlong’s family and friends had anxiously awaited for this moment to come.

“Having Ryder as a patient was a journey for my staff and me,” said Dianne Bennett, ARNP, director of patient care services at Holtz Children’s. “Seeing him finally reunited with his parents after all he had gone through was such a heartwarming moment.”

Dr. Furlong and his wife are happy to be settling in with their son.

“Hearing Ryder cry at home was such a relieving moment,” Dr. Furlong said. “My wife and I had waited months to finally be with our son. We were so overjoyed to have him with us.”

Ryder will continue to visit various specialists to make sure he’s progressing and meeting important developmental milestones.

“As a member of the Jackson family, it was encouraging to know that my son was truly in the best care possible,” Dr. Furlong said. “My wife and I are so appreciative and thankful to everyone who took care of Ryder, including all of the doctors, nurses, therapists, and ancillary staff who treated and loved him as their own child.”

In May 2021, Zac Yezzi found himself in a life-threatening situation after he suffered a stroke.

Yezzi and his fiancé were in St. Barts planning their wedding, when one morning, the 30-year-old began developing a splitting headache that lasted throughout the day. He then lost vision in his right eye, followed by function in his right arm and leg. Somehow, he managed to drag himself to the bathroom and splashed himself with water.

“I was not aware of how traumatic my injury was then, but I knew something was terribly wrong,” Yezzi said. “I asked my fiancé to dial emergency services and request an ambulance.”

Yezzi was rushed to a nearby hospital, where a CT scan revealed that he had a large, eight-centimeter hemorrhage on the left side of his brain, which controls speech. The average hemorrhage is measured in millimeters.

With no neurologist on staff at the hospital in St. Barts, Yezzi was flown to a larger hospital on the nearby island of Guadeloupe. He arrived alone, afraid, and in agonizing pain, unable to communicate with his medical team, who only spoke French.

In Guadeloupe, doctors performed additional tests on Yezzi’s brain, and the results revealed an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) –an abnormal connection between arteries and veins, which would require complex neurosurgery that the hospital was not equipped to perform.

The AVM was determined to be the cause of Yezzi’s initial stroke and hemorrhaging.

While this was happening, Yezzi’s family had contacted the Bee Foundation, an organization that raises awareness about brain aneurysms and hemorrhages. The foundation played a crucial role in getting him transferred by connecting his family with a French-speaking neurosurgeon to communicate with the medical staff in Guadeloupe.

After two days, Yezzi was medically evacuated to Jackson Memorial Hospital. He was accompanied by his fiancé and his father, who were finally able to arrive in Guadeloupe despite multiple flight complications.

“The days leading up to my medevac were two of the longest days of my life,” Yezzi said. “During the flight to Miami, the pressurized cabin was causing me indescribable levels of pain, but I was just relieved to have my fiancé at my side.”

Upon arriving at Jackson Memorial, Yezzi was immediately placed in the neurointensive care unit, where he and his family met with Robert M. Starke, M.D., a University of Miami Health System neurosurgeon and neuroradiologist.

Dr. Starke walked Yezzi and his family through his diagnosis and recommended surgical embolization of the aneurysm and AVM and a craniotomy to remove the aneurysm as the best course of action if they wanted to prevent any recurring brain bleeds.

“Zac should consider himself fortunate,” Dr. Starke said. “Normally, a brain bleed as big as his has the potential to squash the brain, which could lead to death or severe long-term damage.”

After considering his choices, Yezzi elected to undergo surgery.

“I owe everything in my life to Dr. Starke! He and his team saved my life,” Yezzi said. “He’s an incredible surgeon. I’m so lucky to have been transferred to Jackson Memorial.”

Yezzi and his fiancé are back home in New York City, where he’s resumed work. He has made a full recovery, regained his sight, as well as the function in his right arm and leg.

He’s working on promoting awareness and the importance of early detection of brain aneurysms and AVMs to prevent others from having to go through a similar injury.

For first-time parents, JoAnna and Kris Palinchak, having twin girls was a dream come true. But three months after delivering healthy twin girls, the new parents noticed that one of their daughters, Ella, was developing differently than her sister, Lacy.

Ella had developed jaundice, a liver condition that causes yellowing of a newborn baby’s skin and eyes. She required immediate medical attention and was taken to a hospital near their home in Naples. Doctors there conducted exploratory surgery and performed a liver biopsy.

Initially, doctors suspected Ella had biliary atresia, a rare and genetic life-threatening disease that affects the bile ducts in the liver of infants. The Palinchaks turned to a trusted gastrointestinal doctor who advised them to have Ella evaluated by the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI), an affiliation between Jackson Health System and UHealth – University of Miami Health System.

Due to their global expertise in complex cases, the medical team at MTI discovered that Ella’s jaundice had manifested into Alagille syndrome, a condition in which bile builds up in the liver because there are too few bile ducts to drain it.

“Alagille syndrome is a rare genetic condition in early childhood in which many organs may be involved, including the liver, heart, brain, kidneys, bones, eyes, and face,” said Tamir Miloh, MD, medical director of MTI’s pediatric transplant hepatology unit. “Ella had developed progressive jaundice, intractable itching, poor sleeping patterns, and stunted growth.”

While normally non-threatening, her condition was causing early-onset liver failure. Though there is currently no cure for the condition, there are ongoing studies at some children’s hospitals on early diagnosis and new innovative medical interventions aimed at improving outcomes and quality of life in these children. Holtz Children’s Hospital at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center is among the hospitals with experience treating children with Ella’s condition.

After meeting with doctors at the Miami Transplant Institute and Holtz Children’s, Ella’s parents were told the best treatment for their daughter would be a liver transplant.

Although the family was scared after receiving the news, they had confidence in Ella’s medical team and quickly bonded with them — especially Kati Garcia, her assigned nurse and transplant coordinator, who had been with the family every step of the way.

“We were afraid, but Kati was very helpful in helping us understand everything that was happening,” Ella’s mom said.

On December 16, 2016 -one day before her first birthday – Ella was listed on the national transplant waiting list.

The Palinkchaks remained hopeful, but the developmental delays of their baby girl began to discourage them. While Lacy began walking at nine months, it took Ella 24 months.

The loving parents would spend the next two years traveling between their home in Naples and Holtz Children’s.

“She was followed by a transplant and heart teams to optimize her nutritional status while we waited for an appropriate donor,” said Dr. Miloh. “Before safely undergoing transplant surgery, she needed intense nutrition support including fat-soluble vitamins and targeted therapy for severe debilitating itching associated with Alagille.”

On March 8, 2018, Ella’s parents were notified that a donor liver was found for their daughter. They quickly packed their bags and drove to Miami.

As the medical team prepared Ella for transplant surgery, the peaceful look on her face gave the worried parents a sense of security that everything was going to be fine. The following morning, Ella underwent a successful liver transplant led by Akin Tekin, MD, UHealth’s liver, intestinal and multivisceral surgeon, and a multidisciplinary pediatric team at Holtz Children’s.

The surgery was a success. And when the Palinchaks got to see their daughter in the pediatric intensive care unit, they were met with an unexpected surprise: Ella’s nurses had brushed and styled her hair.

“We were in the right place, with the right people,” her mother said. “Within two weeks, Ella was discharged, and ever since then, our baby girl started thriving.”

To honor the donor family, a garden with beautiful flowers was planted on the Palinchaks front lawn For Ella and other children who are battling this condition, the Palinchak family hosts an annual fundraiser in their community to raise awareness of Alagille syndrome.

“The family’s selfless act of organ donation during a moment of sadness forever changed our family,” said JoAnna Palinchak. “We have cried sorrowful tears for them and prayed for them. When our daughter is old enough to understand the path of her life, we hope that the ‘person’ at the center of her story can be identified as her lifesaving superhero.”

Now age 5, Ella visits MTI twice a year for check-ups. She’s happy, healthy, and loves spending time with her twin sister.

“Her beautiful scars tell an amazing story that we will never forget,” JoAnna said. “No words are enough to show appreciation and gratitude for all that was done to change Ella’s life. Every single day of her life is better because of the medical team at MTI.”

While 28-year-old Keyondra Smart knew at a young age that she suffered from sickle cell disease (SCD), she didn’t fully understand the effects of the illness until four years ago when she was hospitalized at Jackson Memorial Hospital with acute chest syndrome and double pneumonia, which occurs when the infection affects both lungs.

Sickle cell disease is a group of hereditary red blood cell disorders that causes the cells that carry oxygen around the body to become hard, sticky, and c-shaped like a sickle. The cells tend to die early, leading to a shortage of oxygenated blood cells. The disease can also put a patient at a higher risk of developing infections.

The Center for Disease Control estimates that more than 100,000 Americans suffer from SCD, and 1 in 13 Black or African American babies is born with sickle cell trait.

After a month’s stay at Jackson Memorial, Keyondra fell into a deep depression. She had to relearn how to walk and was struggling with the reality of living with the effects of SCD.

“I was on my deathbed and in the intensive care unit for two weeks,” Smart said. “I had never experienced so much pain before. I was mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausted.”

Slowly, Smart came to terms with the disease and began learning about ways to manage her ongoing pain and symptoms.

She returned to school and was determined to graduate despite days when she did not feel well following her treatment.

A few years passed, and as Smart’s life seemed to be getting better, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

“My anxiety came back because I was so scared of the virus,” she said. “I already have a weak immune system, and this was something I could die from.”

Sickle Cell and COVID

Thomas Harrington, MD, and Maya Bloomberg, MSN, APRN, are the adult sickle cell providers in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Jackson Memorial. They explained that patients living with sickle cell are at a greater risk of contracting COVID-19. SCD patients who get sick with the virus experience higher rates of hospitalizations and complications, along with worsening sickle cell pain.

Additionally, studies performed before COVID vaccinations were available and the spread of the Delta variant also showed racial disparities in terms of life expectancy due to the virus.

“While life expectancy dropped for all groups, it has been worse for the Black community,” Bloomberg said. “Overall life expectancy dropped by one year for Caucasians and two years for the Black population.”

One study published via PLOS ONE showed that the difference in life expectancy was due in large part to increased exposure at work and access to personal protective equipment.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Faced with the discouraging disparities and risks to patients with sickle cell, Dr. Harrington and Bloomberg are encouraging their patients and the community to get vaccinated.

“You need to put the relative risks in perspective,” Bloomberg said. “The COVID-19 virus is very unpredictable, especially the latest Delta variant. People assume that only older people with health conditions are getting sick and dying, but more and more we’re seeing younger people in the hospital with severe COVID cases.”

If people are worried about the vaccine or have concerns, she encourages them to turn to speak with their doctor.

Keyondra chose to get vaccinated after speaking with Dr. Harrington, who is one of the few experts in sickle cell care in South Florida.

“I know people are scared because there’s a lot of information out there, and they might think it’s a setup, but you should talk to your doctor about any concerns you might have,” Smart said. “I highly recommend other SCD patients get vaccinated, too. We’re already fighting one disease. Who wants to fight two?”

For more than three decades, Cassandra Hirsh has owned Scully’s Tavern, a popular Kendall restaurant.

As Cassandra was getting ready to leave her house and head to work one day last September, the 68-year-old fell down the stairs and suffered a catastrophic injury.

“It happened in the blink of an eye,” she said. “I can’t remember how I fell. I was standing at the top step, and then suddenly, I was on the ground in unimaginable pain.”

Home alone, she laid on the floor, drifting in and out of consciousness, unable to call for help or move to reach for a phone.

It wasn’t until six hours later that her husband, Chris, returned home from the restaurant, where he had been smoking ribs for the week ahead.

He discovered a horrific scene: Cassandra laying on the ground, immobile, in a pool of her own blood. Chris frantically called 911.

Fire rescue carefully lifted Cassandra onto a stretcher. Her nose was broken and her face was covered in bruises. They rushed her to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson South Medical Center.

A CT scan confirmed that Cassandra had a broken neck and an incomplete spinal cord injury. She was assessed by Ian Cote, MD, a UHealth – University of Miami Health System neurosurgeon who specializes in spine surgery at Ryder Trauma at Jackson South.

“She was in a lot of pain, incredibly weak, and couldn’t move either one of her hands or her right leg,” Dr. Cote said.

To alleviate the pressure of her spinal cord, Dr. Cote performed a complex cervical fusion surgery. This type of traumatic injury is rare, and if her medical team had not acted as expeditiously as they did, Cassandra risked permanent paralysis.

“When Cassandra came to the trauma unit, she had incomplete paralysis in her upper and lower extremities,” Dr. Cote said. “But the surgery went great, and her body responded well to the procedure.”

Following the successful surgery, Cassandra required physical rehabilitation to help her get back on her feet. She chose Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at UHealth/Jackson Memorial for its state-of-the-art facility, expert medical team, and commitment to including family in the patient’s rehabilitation and recovery process.

During her six weeks at Lynn Rehabilitation Center, Cassandra underwent intense physical and occupational therapies to relearn how to use the right side of her body. In occupational therapy, her therapists incorporated her love for calligraphy into her daily exercises as a way to work on fine motor skills in her right hand, while her physical therapy focused on helping her regain strength in her right leg.

“Cassandra had a positive attitude and was driven to get better,” said Oliver Acosta, MD, a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician who cared for her. “Our goal at inpatient rehab was to build her back up to help her regain a sense of independence.”

She was discharged just before Christmas and was able to spend the holidays at home with her family.

After completing her outpatient physical and occupational therapy at Lynn Rehabilitation Center, Cassandra was thrilled with how much progress she made. She has regained most of the function in her right hand and is still working on regaining all of the strength in her right leg.

Most importantly, she’s been able to go back to work and continuing managing her restaurant.

“I’m so thankful for the staff at Jackson South and at Lynn Rehab,” Cassandra said. “All of my doctors and nurses were phenomenal throughout my recovery process. I wouldn’t have progressed as quickly as I did if I didn’t have an incredible surgeon and if I wasn’t receiving great care at Lynn Rehab.”

Patients at Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Miami Transplant Institute first in nation to receive custom-made hospital gowns

For more than two decades, Miami fashion designer René Ruiz has designed glamorous gowns that have been worn by celebrities and well-known public figures at red carpet events, galas, and runway shows. Each gown Ruiz makes is designed with the individual in mind with touches inspired by Miami’s rich culture that have been represented in the fashion industry worldwide.

A few years ago, Ruiz began dedicating more time to philanthropy, giving back to the community that has helped grow his brand RENÉ BY RR.

Developing Recovery Gowns for Miami Transplant Institute

That concept was later solidified following an encounter at a local charity event where he met Matthew Pinzur, chief marketing officer at Jackson Health System. The two discussed a collaboration that would allow Ruiz to use his fashion insight to create gowns of a different kind: custom-made hospital gowns for transplant patients recovering from complex surgeries.

Over the course of several months, Ruiz met with representatives from the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI), Jackson leadership, transplant nurses, and post-transplant patients. He learned about their experiences and listened to their recommendations on what it would take to transform a standard hospital gown into a more practical, comfortable gown for this patient population. Among the suggestions was adding snaps and slits in appropriate locations, allowing easier access for the medical teams to check surgical incisions and equipment, such as drains and heart monitors.

Implementation at the Miami Transplant Institute

Ruiz took all of these suggestions to the drawing board and started designing. He researched fabrics that would be comfortable and easily laundered. The result: a denim-blue hospital gown with convenient button snaps and slits. The Miami Transplant Institute team welcomed the change, as did patients of all ages, saying the custom gowns – emblazoned with a JH for Jackson Health inside of Rene Ruiz’s signature red heart icon – are more comfortable and dignified than the standard hospital gown.

Impact and Future for Miami Transplant Institute

“When I witnessed the first patient wearing my design, it was an amazing moment – one of the highlights of my life,” said Ruiz. “It’s been an amazing project for me, this is so fulfilling. What could be better?”

To date, more than 4,000 gowns have been delivered to Jackson Memorial. For now, the gowns are being used exclusively for Miami Transplant Institute’s post-transplant patients.

Renowned fashion designer Rene Ruiz supports Jackson Health System’s mission through philanthropy. To find out how you can also become a supporter on projects like these at Jackson, contact the Jackson Health Foundation today at 305-585-GIVE (4483).

In August 2017, Karen Hunter-Jackson and her son were turning into the driveway of their home in Miami Gardens, when a speeding motorcycle crashed into them. The motorcycle’s gas tank exploded, sending flames running under Hunter-Jackson’s car.

“The first thing that came to my mind was ‘Stop, Drop and Roll,’” remembers Hunter-Jackson. “This is was the lesson I learned in grade school.”

She and son ran through the fire to escape the burning car. She was wearing shorts and sandals and suffered burns up to 30 percent of her body. Her son was not hurt. The driver of the motorcycle was killed on impact.

Hunter-Jackson was immediately rushed to the Miami Burn Center, where she was treated for burns on both legs and her right arm. She underwent a series of skin grafts to her legs and arm, and was released from the hospital two months later.

“In the months I spent at the Miami Burn Center, I became family with most of the doctors, nurses, techs, rehab and occupational therapists,” said Hunter-Jackson. “I couldn’t have asked for a better experience under those circumstances.”

Hunter-Jackson, who underwent physical therapy to learn how to walk again, is also an active member of the Burn Survivor Support Group at the Miami Burn Center.

She’s currently undergoing laser treatments at the Miami Burn Center, which will help minimize her scars, and improve her flexibility.

Hunter-Jackson expressed her gratitude during Burn Safety Festival at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

The Miami Burn Center in collaboration with City of Miami Fire Rescue and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue hosted the festival to raise awareness and educate the public about burn safety and prevention. The Burn Center is one of the leading, most comprehensive burn treatment centers in the nation, treating hundreds of patients – from babies to adults – each year.

“As good as the team is at taking care of burn injuries, the best thing, of course, is to prevent it from happening at all,” said Louis Pizano, medical director at Miami Burn Center

According to the American Burn Association (ABA), every year more than 450,000 serious burn injuries occur in the United States that require medical treatment.

Gerard Daphnis and Jermaine Chambers were top recruits in the University of Miami’s football program; they forged a strong friendship on the field, one that has withstood the test of time.

When Daphnis needed a lifesaving kidney transplant, Chambers secretly got tested to see if he was a compatible donor. Just days before Christmas 2018, he shared the results with Daphnis in a handwritten card: “I’m your guy – see you on January 10. #CanesForLife.”

“It took a few minutes for it to click,” Daphnis said. “Once it did, it was very emotional. For the first time in a long time, I felt like there was hope, a chance that I was going to be okay.”

The successful transplant surgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital was performed by Gaetano Ciancio, MD, MBA, FACS, the Miami Transplant Institute’s chief medical officer and director of the kidney and kidney-pancreas transplant programs, Mahmoud Morsi, MD, CPHQ, abdominal transplant surgeon, along with a multidisciplinary team.

“Everyone at Jackson, at the Miami Transplant Institute – they’re awesome,” said Chambers. “They all worked together to make this whole thing possible; they helped me save my friend’s life.”

The pair first met in 1992, soon after being recruited by UM. Chambers, a wide receiver from Homestead Senior High and Daphnis, a tight end from Miami Norland Senior High, were already making headlines in Sports Illustrated during their freshman year of college. They became fast friends as they both looked to make their mark on the football field and the world.

But shortly after graduation, Daphnis was diagnosed with diabetes. For several years, no one knew just how much his health had deteriorated. He subsequently started dialysis.

“It all started when I stepped on a nail while pouring a new driveway at my house,” recalls Daphnis. “I went to the ER, got a tetanus shot and went on my way. I thought I was okay.”

The injury led to several fractures and a serious infection that would not go away. He underwent two surgeries and a series of painful debridements – the medical removal of the dead and damaged tissue to save the healthy tissue remaining in his foot.

But the father of five was hit with even more bad news.

His foot was not getting better and one of the antibiotics he had been prescribed had further compromised his already damaged kidneys.

“My kidneys were functioning at about 60 percent before that,” recalls Daphnis. “Now they were down to 11 percent.”

Barely able to get around and in near-constant pain, Daphnis was retaining fluid. He ballooned to 410 pounds.

“I felt like a cross between Frankenstein and the Michelin man,” he said. “I had difficulty walking and difficulty breathing.”

His health issues led to his foot being amputated. Five-hour sessions of dialysis – three times a week – were keeping him alive. Doctors determined his best chance at survival was a kidney transplant.

That is when Daphnis learned about the Living Donor Kidney Program at the Miami Transplant Institute, an affiliation between Jackson Health System and UHealth – University of Miami Health System, the second largest transplant center in the United States.

After undergoing testing, his wife Harriett had been deemed a potential match. But she was later rejected as a donor. Months later, a friend also offered to be a donor, but was also determined not to be a viable match.

“That really took a lot out of me,” Daphnis said. “It was a tough pill to swallow.”

Around the same time, Chambers reached out to Harriett and expressed interest in being the donor. As he went through the necessary testing, they decided not to tell Daphnis.

“We didn’t want to get his hopes up and disappoint him,” said Chambers. “He’d already been through so much.”

But Chambers turned out to be the perfect match.

Today, Chambers, 45, and Daphnis, 44, are both healthy and have become advocates for organ donation.

During April’s National Donate Life Month, both Daphnis and Chambers were speakers at the annual Miami Transplant Institute reunion event at Jackson Memorial Hospital, where transplant survivors share their stories of how transplantation has impacted their lives in the hopes of promoting the importance of becoming an organ donor.

Nearly 200 attendees, including former patients, doctors, and transplant staff, attended the dinner.

“They’re the best doctors in the world,” chimed in Daphnis. “And Jermaine is my hero, even if he doesn’t like me to say that.”