Save a Child's Heart Launches its 2019 Mission Trip to Ethiopia to Perform Life-Saving Heart Procedures

WASHINGTON, Nov. 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Save a Child's Heart (SACH), an Israeli- based, international, non-profit organization with the mission of improving the quality of pediatric cardiac care throughout the world, today announced that members of their medical team will be traveling to The Children's Cardiac Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia this month to perform life-saving heart surgery and catheterizations for an expected group of 30 children as part of Mission Ethiopia. 

During this trip, the SACH team will work together with Dr. Yayehyirad (Yayu) Mekonnen Ejigu, one of four physicians trained by SACH, and his medical team from the Children's Heart Fund of Ethiopia Cardiac Center. The team will work around the clock to screen and diagnose children and to follow up on past patients.

Additionally, Mission Ethiopia will mark the 25th anniversary of the partnership between SACH and its partners in Ethiopia and celebrate the lives of more than 700 Ethiopian children saved through this partnership. The Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Mr. Abiy Ahmed, who was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, is expected to attend the event together with hundreds of Save a Child's Heart past patients. 

"SACH seeks to mend the hearts of children around the world without regard to race, religion, gender or nationality," said Simon Fisher, Executive Director of Save a Child's Heart. "With Mission Ethiopia, we have put in place the critically needed resources to provide high-level pediatric cardiac care, including a state-of-the-art operating room, cath lab, and cardiology clinic along with an amazing pediatric ICU team working together to perform medical procedures and diagnosis on children in need. Mission Ethiopia will change the lives of so many in Ethiopia, and we are grateful to our teams and partners in making this happen."

SACH has treated more than 700 children from Ethiopia and trained nine medical professionals, all of whom are now practicing locally. Since its founding in 1995, the organization has helped more than 5,000 children in over 62 countries.

Abbott, a global healthcare company, which has partnered with SACH on the Little Heroes campaign to treat defects in the hearts of babies and children, has graciously provided funding and medical devices to aid in procedures during this mission. SACH works with numerous corporations, government organizations, NGOs and families and individuals to achieve its mission. 

To learn more about Mission Ethiopia visit: https://missionethiopia.org/

About Save a Child's Heart

Save a Child's Heart (SACH) is an Israeli-based international non-profit organization, with special consultative status granted by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (ECOSOC) and recent recipient of the 2018 prestigious United Nations Population Award. Founded in 1995 at the Wolfson Medical Centre in Holon, Israel, SACH is improving the quality of pediatric cardiac care for children in developing countries by creating centers of competence on the ground to improve the health and welfare of all children, regardless of the child's nationality, religion, color, gender or financial situation. The organization provides medical treatment, holds weekly pre-operative and follow-up cardiology clinics, and offers a comprehensive training program for medical professionals around the world.

Media Contact: 
Tamar Shapira 
[email protected] 
972-52-8669446

SOURCE Save a Child's Heart Foundation