Each year, an estimated 1 in every 100 live births globally is affected by congenital heart disease (CHD), making it the most common birth defect. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and recent regional studies, thousands of children in Cambodia are born with CHD each year. Tragically, the majority go undiagnosed or untreated due to a lack of specialized surgical care and pediatric cardiac facilities.
To address this urgent need, CHPAA is launching the Cambodia Pediatric Heart Surgery Mission — a life-saving initiative to provide free cardiac surgeries to indigent children and build sustainable pediatric cardiac care capacity in Cambodia. We are proud to partner with the Cambodian National Children’s Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia — bringing together a global team of volunteer medical professionals including Pediatric Cardiac Surgeons, Cardiologists, Perfusionists, Intensive Care Physicians, Critical Care Nurses.
Together, we aim to restore hope and give these children a future they deserve.
Cambodian children with congenital heart disease. This population is important because it is underserved. These children otherwise go undiagnosed and untreated, suffering the consequences of congenital heart disease.
I will not only be caring for children receiving surgery during our trip, I will supervise their ICU care and train the local staff to be able to care for this population. The goal will be to create a sustaining program in Cambodia through providing them with experience and education. I have pediatric cardiac critical care text books to provide the intensivists at the local children's hospital to help them solidify our teachings between trips.
I had the privilege to treat 7 patients who were selected for cardiac surgery during this inaugural mission. However the impact goes beyond just those patients. I had the opportunity to teach 6 intensivists, 4 cardiologists and countless nurses. Bonding with the patients and the local team was the highlight of the trip for me. I had the opportunity to learn from them, the way that they had the opportunity to learn from me.
