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Hi Everyone,
There are people in this world who do extraordinary things, simply by doing what they love to do, by the way they interact with others. People who change lives without knowing it, make the world better just by being in it. Dr. Cengiz Karsli is one of those people.
Cengiz has been Isaac’s Anesthesiologist since the very start - since Isaac was 18 months old and about to undergo a massive spinal-cord decompression surgery. We’ve written about him often from time to time, and many of you have asked about him (and if you should ensure you get him for your own children!)
He’s always one to respond to emails when we need him, and goes out of his way to ensure he’s available to be here for Isaac and our family for surgeries. Ellen and I couldn’t imagine going through the stress of one of these surgeries without knowing that he is on hand to look after our son. He’s the calming presence we need before things begin, he’s the utmost professional as the surgery gets started, and he’s one of the finest Doctors at Sick Kids in Toronto, so we’re rest assured knowing that Isaac is safe in his care. Once all is said and done, he finds us quickly and lets us know how things went in the warm way that parents need. We arrived at the hospital this morning at the height of our stress. We left feeling relieved, relaxed, and thankful. We have Dr. Cengiz Karsli to thank for that. And we will never be able to thank him enough.
Cengiz was only supposed to be on call this morning. But upon hearing that Isaac was going to be in surgery, he scheduled himself in for the procedure to look after him, and then he stayed on until 1 pm. As we were heading out of the hospital tonight, Cengiz was coming back in - he’s on call for the next 12 hours as well. I’m sure he’s tired after a long day and staring at an even longer night. But he caught us as we were heading out the door and checked in on our boy, patiently answered all of Isaac’s questions, and bid us all a good night.
There aren’t many people like Cengiz in this world, someone who goes out of their way to make things easier for kids and families. Many MPS specialists are moving to a system where only 1 or 2 experts are used for surgeries on our kids. Their airways usually dictate that only the best should be involved with these procedures. We’re lucky that we have the best, and that he’s a wonderful person at the same time.
Isaac is now resting comfortably at our hotel for the night. We’re back tomorrow for a check in on his eye and his infusion. I’ll keep everyone updated as I can.
Thank you to everyone who checked in on us today - we truly appreciate your support.
Best,
A.