Ahmed Abu Salama is a teenage boy from Gaza who was severely injured in an Israeli attack over one year ago.
Thanks to the efforts of the Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF) Ahmed and his mother Karima arrived in Madison on Sunday May 24th, safely and on time for medical treatment donated by American Family Children's Hospital. Their journey from Gaza to Madison took two weeks, with the biggest challenge of getting from Gaza to Egypt going relatively smoothly.
An enthusiastic group of a dozen people greeted Ahmed and Karima at the airport. For the first week, Ahmed and Karima stayed with a volunteer host family. Since then, Karima has stayed at the Ronald McDonald House while Ahmed has been at Children's Hospital. If all goes well Ahmed will move into Ronald McDonald House with his mother later this week while receiving outpatient care at the hospital.
Ahmed was scheduled to have cranial reconstruction surgery on June 10th, but due to complications from other injuries it was postponed until June 16. The surgery went well, although Ahmed is still in the hospital and is being treated for an earlier foot infection. It is hoped that he will soon be discharged to return for outpatient treatment and therapy. At this time, we do not know the exact length of Ahmed's stay, but it is estimated to be 3 to 7 more weeks.
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