Children with congenital heart defects who underwent heart operations funded by the Heartbeat Vietnam programme receive gifts on International Children's Day on June 1. — Photo courtesy of VinaCapital Foundation

HCM CITY — VinaCapital Foundation’s Heartbeat Vietnam programme has reached a remarkable milestone with the 10,000th successful heart operation for a 13-year-old boy with congenital heart disease from the Ba Na ethnic group in Bình Định Province.

After 17 years of growth and building a good reputation among partners and donors, Heartbeat Vietnam has sponsored free heart surgeries for 10,000 children and provided post-operative care as well as family grants to help ease the financial burden for these families, said Don Lam, CEO and founding partner of VinaCapital and chair of the VinaCapital Foundation Board.

“With the invaluable support from our dedicated local partners, hospital together with doctors and nurses, and local and international donors, VinaCapital Foundation has been significantly contributing to the improvement and transformation of lives of the country’s most vulnerable," Lam said.

“VinaCapital Foundation is determined to strengthen our programme and move forward to reach out to more children and families, providing them better access to healthcare, better living conditions, and better lives overall,” he said.

There are 15,000 infants born with congenital heart defects a year in Việt Nam, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Health.

The cost of treatment is high and many patients come from disadvantaged families who cannot afford the treatment costs. 

Heartbeat Vietnam has provided 976 continuing care packages so that patients are able to visit the hospital for check-ups and follow-ups, 765 grants for families to have more resources to take care of their children, and 247 scholarships for students to maintain their education. — VNS