Enjoy the gift of life

Editorial Staff

I followed with anxiety the story of the two Central African conjoined twins who were joined at the back of the neck and successfully separated at the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital in Rome. The final operation which ended with the successful separation was performed last year in June and took 18 hours to carry out and more than 30 doctors and nurses were involved. Ervina and Prefina who are now two years old and are well, were baptised by Pope Francis in August 2020. I was very sad to read the criticism which appeared in some newspapers: instead of rejoicing for the possibility to give the twins a normal life there were complaints about the amount of money spent (who will pay?) and it was asked if the money could not have been better spent on our health system maybe helping “our” sick children. Is our heart so hardened? As a nurse I wonder: if the operation could have saved only one of their lives (in the case the conjoined twins had shared an organ) how would that choice have been made? And would such a choice have been ethic?

M.S.

As a nurse you know better than I that life is a priceless gift, so we can do nothing but rejoice for the success of the operation. When it comes to life we are all the same and “our” healthcare does not exist because it belongs to everyone without distinction. The operation performed at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù Children’s hospital wanted to witness that healthcare should be universal beyond borders and differences of race and colours. A few words concerning your question about what would have happened in the case that the twins had been sharing an organ: the ethical protocol would have certainly helped to make the best possible choice. Bearing in mind that when it comes to life and death we do not have clear answers, we must be humble and accept to make mistakes and to learn from them. Anyhow it is fundamental to have an open heart and to be humble also when facing our medical and scientific knowledge.