Miraculous little Olivia, who died last November after a rise in hospitalizations for a rare heart defect, leaves behind a rich legacy at the Laval University Hospital Center (CHUL), where a work of art will now be installed in her honor.
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“Little Big” Olivia, who died on November 26th at the age of 8, left behind a “big life lesson” and also helped advance medicine in pediatric cardiology.
More than 20 interventions
This is the opinion of Dr. Frédéric Jacques, a pediatric heart surgeon, who performed five open-heart surgeries on the little girl and 14 additional operations before she celebrated her first birthday.
In his eleven years of practice, he has never operated on another child so often.
Marcel Tremblay / QMI Agency
The pediatric heart surgeon Dr. Frédéric Jacques of CHUL claims to have learned “a big life lesson” with little Olivia, who died last November.
“Olivia was happy to be there, happy to be alive. She still wished she was alive, but her little body was tired. Throughout her life, she has shown us – especially me – that it is important to fight for the patients we treat, because despite the difficulties, there is something beautiful, magical, supernatural in life,” mentions the 42-year-old surgeon .
In October 2015, the surgeon also performed a unique operation never before performed in Canada by installing a biological valve made from a bovine aorta.
“I was blessed because I had the opportunity to be trained in Boston when this strategy was being developed,” says the man, who admits he learned a lot from Olivia.
Even when her colleagues didn't believe in her chances, Olivia proved them wrong, says the specialist. “She has been an encouragement to me on many occasions. Now I often say that as long as there is life there is hope,” he says.
A work in his honor
A piece of art also hangs in his honor in the CHUL Department of Pediatric Cardiology.
The painting, created for Olivia by artist Nikolina Okuka, is intended to be a message of hope and perseverance for children with heart disease who have to overcome the limitations of this department.
“We are here to fight as long as the flame does not go out,” claims the surgeon.
Marcel Tremblay / QMI Agency
The artwork created for Olivia by artist Nikolina Okuka aims to celebrate “the life of someone as special as Olivia,” who was nicknamed Oliviesque at CHUL.
Olivia suffers from a rare heart defect and has defied the odds more than once.
“She wasn’t close to a miracle,” says Dr. Jacques.
She also suffered from Cat 6B syndrome, which caused developmental delays and an inability to eat. She was fed exclusively through tube feeding.
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