Baby Chyn back to ICU, family appealing for financial support

Chuck de Guzman with baby Chyn

Nina Guzman with baby Chyn

A Filipina baby who was in 2015 diagnosed with Down Syndrome, a congenital heart disease, a complete ventricular septal defect and pulmonary hypertension is back in the hospital fighting for her life.

Born to non-resident Filipino parents, Chyn de Guzman underwent heart surgery on February 8 at Kiang Wu Hospital.

As of Tuesday, the family’s bill has risen to approximately MOP120,000.

Baby Chyn is currently in the Kiang Wu Hospital Intensive Care Unit, waiting for her condition to stabilize sufficiently for an additional heart surgery.

Her father Chuck de Guzman lamented that his daughter may be scheduled for a major heart surgery in the coming months, depending on her condition.

De Guzman, who works at a resort in Cotai, claimed they were advised to prepare MOP500,000 for the upcoming operation, a staggering amount which the family could not provide.

As the father is a non-resident worker in Macau, his daughter is not entitled to any financial support from the government. His wife is on a tourist visa as she resigned from work to care for their daughter.

De Guzman said that the family approached the Social Welfare Bureau two years ago, but their request for financial assistance was denied.

When questioned on whether he would request assistance again, he replied: “Unfortunately they can’t provide assistance because we’re not residents. I think it’s useless to try again because they would give us the same reasons.”

“It’s quite difficult to approach the Macau government. It’s disappointing but we cannot do anything. This isn’t our territory and we have to respect their laws,” the father said.

As a result, Chyn’s family is again hoping for the financial assistance from netizens.

Back in 2015, the family launched a fundraising campaign on Facebook and Indiegogo to gather funds for the baby’s first operation. (The total raised then, nearly USD15,000, was fully used that year.)

After the recent operation, the parents have updated followers on their Facebook page “Help our Little Angel Baby Chyn” on the current situation.

Between Tuesday and Wednesday, netizens donated about USD600.

“We were hoping that people would reach out to donate,” the father said.

De Guzman admitted that their current situation is extremely tough as they are not only facing their daughter’s complicated health issues, but also the lack of the finances they need to save her.

Baby Chyn is currently showing some improvement, but is still assisted by a ventilator as she cannot breathe on her own.

Just this week, it was discovered that the baby is also suffering from pneumonia due to the use of the ventilator.

[UPDATED]