…”Gift’s Smile Taught Me That.”

Thinking back to a time before social distancing, here is a beautiful story of connection from the end of last year.

This 12-year-old girl from Uganda is Gift.
Pictured here alongside cardiologist Dr Alessandro, they met at the Salam Centre for Cardiac Surgery.

“It was 4 am, Gift was worried, her breathing wasn’t right, too fast, so we admitted her immediately. I still remember that early morning, trying to calm her down and understand what was going on.”

Suffering from rheumatic cardiac disease, it was time for Gift to receive the surgery she needed.

The best way for Dr Alessandro to understand how Gift was recovering was her smile: “Smiling is a universal language. It is sometimes even more important than clinical signs, giving you an idea of what you are doing as a doctor and mostly as a human being. Gift’s smile taught me that.”

One thing is for sure: these two have a bond that will last forever, regardless of distance.