The humanitarian purpose of our organization is to offer surgery to children who live in countries where it is not available.At first, children were brought to Europe and America to be operated on, and when strong enough were sent home, after staying with volunteer host families. We soon realized the advantage of treating children in their own communities, where they could be understood in their own language, fed familiar foods, and where more than one family member could be involved in the recovery process.
We therefore developed the idea of taking surgical medical missions to countries where there was the greatest need. We now take the surgeons to them rather than bringing the children to the surgeons. This provides for two consequent advantages: Many more children can be served, and local surgeons can be trained. Local hospitals needed to be found that would accept our surgical medical missions, and where there was no hospital they needed to be built.
SoH today has a network of 5 hospitals where we are free to send surgical medical missions. We are happy to consider additions to this list, especially in the Western hemisphere.
Five high technology facilities to provide cost-effective pediatric care and surgical training locally.
The Maputo Heart Institute (MHI), June 2001
A 30-bed facility in Mozambique, designed to accommodate 500 operations and 10,000 examinations each year. Operational since 2001, the Institute has performed (as of July 2006) more than 33,220 consultations, 402 operations and 568 invasive procedures, with 362 surgeries and 125 catheterizations on non-paying indigent children. Currently, MHI examines 30 patients every day (750 per year) and 90% of the surgical procedures are on non-paying children. MHI is expected to become financially independent by 2008.
The Phnom Penh Heart Center (PPHC), October 2001
AÂ 50-bed facility in Cambodia which provides treatment for cardiovascular diseases on both a regional and national level. The hospital is designed to accommodate 1,000 operations and 20,000 examinations each year. The Center has been operational since October, 2001 and had achieved as of October 2006, over 39,000 examinations and 1,600 operations. The PHCC is expected to reach financial autonomy in 2007.
The Phnom Penh Neurosurgery Center (PPNC), March 2004
A 20-bed facility in Cambodia, adjacent to PPHC, started operations within the Calmette Hospital compound in Phnom Penh. The center is designed to conduct 10,000 examinations and 1,000 surgeries each year. Over 130 surgeries have been performed since 2004 (as of June 2006 ). The center is a regional reference center for neurosurgery for Southeast Asia.
The Dakar Cardiology Center(DCC), June 2005
A 40-bed facility in Senegal has been operational since 2005 in the University compound of Fann in Dakar. The Center is designed to perform 3,000 examinations and 300 cardiac surgeries per year. The Center has received its first surgical mission from our European partners to operate on 15 children in October 2005. More than 50 heart surgeries (as of May 2006) have been performed since 2005.
The French Medical Institute for Children (FMIC), November 2005
An 85-bed facility in Afghanistan to treat various maternal and pediatric pathologies with a center of pediatric surgery.The Institute is designed to accomodate 2,000 operations and 50,000 examinations each year. Since the opening in 2005, more than 14,000 examinations and 200 operations with 30 heart surgeries have been performed (as of July 2006).