Vision and Partnership
2009 marked a special milestone for Children’s HeartLink as we celebrated 40 years of helping children in developing countries live healthier lives. Our program began in 1969 with one courageous man bringing needy children with heart disease to Minnesota for charity treatment. Now, it has evolved into one of the world’s most respected non-governmental organizations, coordinating and applying a successful cardiac care delivery model in all corners of the globe. Today, we mobilize resources to deliver and improve cardiac care, build capacity and promote sustainability at hospitals in the developing world. Throughout our organization’s own growth and development, we have been propelled by the dedication and generosity of our medical volunteers—the finest specialists from around the world. Children’s HeartLink has partnered with nearly 100 medical volunteers, representing premier medical institutions, including Mayo Clinic, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford University, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Shanghai Children’s Medical Center and Birmingham Children’s Hospital in the UK.
Each and every day, there are health care professionals in the developing world who benefit from support provided by Children’s HeartLink. The vast majority of children treated with heart disease can go on to live near normal lives—attend school, participate in sports and eventually gain employment. Last year, our partner sites around the globe provided more than 304,000 outpatient visits, 140,000 echocardiograms, 11,000 catheterization procedures and 12,000 cardiac operations. Your unwavering support of Children’s HeartLink makes this vitally important work possible and successful.
Uncertain economic times tempt everyone to cut back, to spend and do less. However, the needs of children in the developing world are still present—they do not slow or retreat alongside global markets. In fact, the reverse is true: the work and leadership that Children’s HeartLink provides in the arena of medical volunteerism and humanitarian outreach
is needed now more than ever. Together with our partner sites, we are constantly seeking out new cost-effective and practical solutions to improve the quality of care for children with heart disease. Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Joseph A. Dearani, M.D.
Medical Director, Children’s HeartLink
Mayo Clinic, Division of Cardiovascular Surgery
For more on Dr. Dearani's and others' thoughts on the requirements for building a successful pediatric cardiac program, see the paper "Improving Pediatric Cardiac Surgical Care in Developing Countries: Matching Resources to Needs."
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