Celebration as baby Satrin leaves hospital

 Baby Satrin Osinya bids his admirers bye as he walks out of Kenyatta National Hospital yesterday.  [PHOTO: TABITHA OTWORI/STANDARD]

By ABIGAEL SUM

Nairobi, Kenya; Baby Satrin Osinya was discharged from hospital on Thursday ready to conquer the world after surviving a terrorist’s bullet.

He stepped outside the hospital building to find an excited crowd that was waiting to catch a glimpse of the miracle boy.

“To witness such triumph is all by God’s grace. I am very happy that he is well despite having a near-death experience. I pray that he has a great life ahead, one filled with pleasant memories and he turns out to be of great help to his family,” said Sarah Moraa, one of the onlookers.

Moments after his discharge, the boy was running around and enjoying the attention he was receiving, a clear indication of how happy he was to be finally free from the confines of his ward. He then played with journalists, both local and international, each of them scrambling to take pictures of the 18-month-old boy.

At some point, he grabbed KTN’s microphone and could no let it go.

“Lete, lete… yangu, yangu (give it to me, it’s mine),” said Satrin, who has become the pearl of the nation.

 “I can only say I am grateful to God for giving me an opportunity to experience such joy at this moment. I thank the Government, Amref for the support and everyone else who prayed for us and contributed in any way, more especially Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko as well as Mobile Network Orange Kenya for catering for our accommodation here in Nairobi,” said Benson Osinya, the father.

He added: “I have forgiven the terrorist who killed my wife and five others and left my son with a bullet injury. Let God be the judge.”

Baby Satrin has left a gap at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), which was his home for the last 16 days.

“We are delighted with the way the operation went until today when he can finally go home, back to his normal life. We are however sad because he is going. We will miss him because he had become a part of us,” said KNH CEO Lily Koros.

Ms Koros wished Satrin and his family well hoping that from the experience the boy will in future become a neurosurgeon.

Normally children his age would scream at the sight of medical instruments, but not baby Satrin.

The nurses were able to remove his stitches on Monday with a lot of ease.

“He was one of the easiest patients to manage. When the doctors asked us to remove his stitches on Monday, I was worried we were in for big trouble. However, he was very co-operative,” noted Awiti Rosila, Nursing Officer in charge of ward 4C where Satrin was staying.

Awiti describes the boy as very happy, playful and pleasant, adding that he will be greatly missed.

The family will be in Nairobi for the next three days before going back to their home in Mombasa.

Baby Satrin will still take medication at home but  will visit KNH clinics for some time.

Dr Julius Kiboi, one of neurosurgeons who performed the intricate operation, exuded confidence that the child will live a healthy life. However, they will still follow up on him.