July 29, 2024

“We are addressing a group of people. They don’t have a voice. We have to be the voice of the people who cannot talk.”

The words of Dr. Veluswamy, CEO of G. Kuppuswamy Naidu Memorial (GKNM) Hospital in Coimbatore, India, resonate deeply with our mission and the impact we strive to make at Children’s HeartLink

Dear Supporters,

Thank you. I am very grateful to our community who cares deeply about ensuring all children have access to heart care. No matter where you come from, you understand the vital importance of accessible care for children born with congenital heart disease (CHD).

Today, children are dying preventable deaths because they lack access to heart care. But TODAY, children are also living because of people like you. Because you are giving a voice to children by investing in the Children’s HeartLink mission. The training, mentoring and relationships being built through Children’s HeartLink partnerships today in Asia and South America are creating a ripple effect of sustainable change for children. Whether you’re providing direct care to children in need, donating, volunteering or sharing messages of impact, thank you! You have made the following possible in the past twelve months*:

Developing Regional Leaders in Pediatric Cardiac Care: Nhi Dong 1 became the seventh Children’s HeartLink Center of Excellence, joining esteemed hospitals in Brazil, China, India and Malaysia. This is especially significant as it is where Children’s HeartLink’s work started back in 1969. Seven Children’s HeartLink Centers of Excellence worldwide bring regional expertise to their areas and foster learning opportunities in low-resource settings helping to elevate others around them.

Expanding Partnerships for the Sake of Children: Two newly formed partnerships in India further the impact Children’s HeartLink is having. In Mumbai, Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Centre for Child Heart Care is partnering with Children’s Mercy Kansas City Hospital to expand the reach of their pediatric heart care team, allowing them to screen and care for more children with heart disease and train other heart care teams in the region to do the same, ultimately preventing avoidable deaths. Additionally, a partnership between Amrita Hospital Faridabad and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia aims to ensure lasting, sustainable impact in the availability of heart care for children with CHD. Today, Children’s HeartLink has partnerships with 22 hospitals in Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Malaysia and Vietnam and 18 medical volunteer teams in the Canada, U.K. and United States

Facilitating Trainings to Improve Heart Care: We have found innovative ways to engage our Children’s HeartLink Centers of Excellence in training others, significantly enhancing the skills and knowledge of heart care teams. Together, medical volunteers, Centers of Excellence and partner hospitals participated in over 30 trainings.

• • • Training in Coimbatore, India
    • Doctors from Vietnam train in San Francisco, United States
    • Doctors from Bangladesh train in Leeds, U.K.
    • Training in Kochi, India
    • Training in Sepang, Malaysia
    • Nurse training in Dhaka, Bangladesh
    • Training in Kolkata, India
    • Doctors from Brazil train in Houston, United States

Leading & Elevating Local Experts: Many Children’s HeartLink partners, volunteers and staff presented at the World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery (WCPCCS). These experts showed the progress being made for children with heart disease.

Giving a Voice to the Invisible Child: The 2024 WCPCCS Call to Action, spearheaded by Children’s HeartLink, led to the formation of the Global Coalition for Pediatric and Congenital Hearts, advocating for the invisible child.

Influencing WHO: For the first time ever, Children’s HeartLink hosted side events at UN high-level meetings and the World Health Assembly (WHA). While at the WHA, a new resolution on maternal and child health was introduced. For the first time ever, it calls out the need to address congenital anomalies to achieve the maternal and child survival targets of the Sustainable Development Goals.

“When Children’s HeartLink comes here they interact with the team and it’s a quick knowledge acquisition. It’s like a sponge absorbs water. Because you share a lot of knowledge, expertise and skills. They absorb it and learn teamwork. The other things they learn about are how do you talk to the patient, how do you interact with the patient and how you make them comfortable. That training comes with Children’s HeartLink and it goes beyond that. The same training changes the way we deal with patients and the patient becomes part of the treatment process. And education continues both ways.”

Dr. Veluswamy, CEO of GKNM Hospital in Coimbatore, India

As I reflect upon these accomplishments, I see progress being made toward a world where all children have access to heart care—a basic human right. Our partnerships and initiatives aren’t possible without the generous Children’s HeartLink community. We are all advocates and voices for children born with CHD.

As we look forward to the next 12 months, we need your continued support and the support of new people passionate about transforming heart care for children. Reach out if you’d like to hear more about our work for the upcoming year. I would be happy to connect for tea, in person or online.

Children are our future, and investing in their health now is the right thing to do.

Thank you for your unwavering support.

Sincerely,

Jackie Boucher
President, Children’s HeartLink

*The last 12 months refer to Fiscal Year 2024, which spans from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.