A sincere thanks
Fifteen-year old Escarleth Betancourt-Gutierrez is recovering well from 10 hours of surgery to straighten and stabilize her severely twisted and bent spine. The young girl is here with her mother, Rosario, from Honduras, brought here by missionary-turned-friend, James Netterville, M.D.
The following is an email message sent on Monday, May 5, from Escarleth’s friend and host Dr. Netterville, to Kevin Churchwell, M.D., the CEO of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, to thank several of the volunteers involved in her care.
Kevin,
I want to thank you, and the Children’s Hospital for the remarkable gift that has been bestowed on my little friend Escarleth. Tomorrow at 10:00 AM she presents for her postoperative appointment to Dr. Greg Mencio. Through the generosity of Children’s Hospital, and Dr. Mencio, this beautiful, indigent girl from Honduras has undergone the life-changing repair of her scoliosis. I wish you could meet her before she returns to Honduras. As I closely observed her throughout this remarkable surgical experience, I witnessed both inner, and outer beauty unveiled, similar to watching a beautiful rose unfurl for spring. Her outlook toward her future has blossomed as she now sees a normal beautiful young lady in the mirror, instead of a crippled bent spine that needed to be hidden under heavy clothing from public view. Her trip from the inner city of Tegucigalpa to Nashville has been a miraculous blessing for so many of us who have been able to share this experience with Escarleth, and her mother Rosario.
This miracle, the gift of “normal life,” would not be possible without the wonderful attitude, and help of so many of your staff who deeply care about the welfare of others. I want to personally thank Amy Casseri and her entire staff for all they do to organize, and administrate this difficult program. Susan Kohari stands out as a great ambassador for Children’s Hospital and all of us at Vanderbilt. Her personal compassion for this little girl, that she had never met, shown through as she labored many hours to help me, and channel our application through the necessary approval process. It has been a blessing for me to get to know her, and work with her.
I hope you realize what a remarkable Surgeon, and gentleman that you have in Dr. Mencio. Eighteen months ago I walked into his operating room and loaded on the view box the poor quality films from Honduras of her severely abnormal spine. The positive, generous spirit that he displayed that day, as he warmly volunteered to help her, has continued on throughout this entire process. I observed his meticulous surgical skill in the operating room, and witnessed why he is revered by the young house-staff who come here to work with him. His kindness to Escarleth has been father-like throughout the care he provided for her. All of his staff in the Pediatric Orthopaedic Department have emulated his spirit of compassion to her.
There are so many other nurses and staff who have made this a remarkable experience for Escarleth and our church family who have shared this with them. It is impossible to name all of your team who showed compassion, and cared for her in the various units including, preoperative evaluation, surgery, recovery, and then for a week stay on the central ward on the eighth floor. Although Escarleth and her mother could not understand the spoken words, the love and true compassion was communicated by the attitudes and caring smiles of the staff throughout her stay on each of these units.
Finally I want to thank Dr. John Brock and the entire International Benevolent Surgery Committee for their generous selection of Escarleth to come to Vanderbilt. Her care has elevated Children’s Hospital in the eyes of so many who have followed her story. I want to thank you again for leading such a remarkable institution. I am very proud to be a part of Vanderbilt, and to be associated with each of you who have contributed so much to giving this little girl the gift of Life.
Sincerely,
Jim
James L. Netterville M.D.
Mark C. Smith Professor
Director, Head & Neck Surgery
Dept. of Oto. Head & Neck Surgery
Bill Wilkerson Center
Vanderbilt Medical Center
Nashville, Tennessee 37232
Tags: Escarleth, Honduran, Honduras, Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital, scoliosis
