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| A doctor examines students in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap during the FedEx Delivers Heartbeats Outreach Clinic program – PHOTO: FEDEX |
With top cardiologists and surgeons from HCMC, Hanoi and Danang, the mobile clinics traveled across the country to diagnose and provide treatment for children with heart defects and other diseases. The clinic visits included registration, diagnosis, surgery and post-operative assistance for patients and their families.
During Covid-19, it has become even more vital for the outreach clinics to reach remote areas that have limited access to healthcare. Despite the challenges, the program was able to set up temporary clinics in rural locations so that children there could receive essential healthcare.
The program prioritized enhancing the quality of each clinic and minimizing risks of infection. With the pandemic, mobile clinics were carefully equipped with face masks, hand sanitizers and sterilized equipment. Strict measures were taken to ensure proper social distancing.
“Congenital heart disease among children in Vietnam remains high, with some 11,000 babies born every year with this disease. With the FedEx Delivers Heartbeats program, we hope to increase early detection of heart defects in children and offer access to diagnosis and treatment for these children so that they can live their lives to the fullest,” said Hardy Diec, managing director of FedEx Express Indochina.
“For the past nine years, thanks to the support from FedEx, VCF’s Rural Outreach Clinic program has reached thousands of children with congenital heart defects who receive early diagnosis and medical interventions. Those children are given the chance to live healthy lives, lifting the emotional and financial burdens off their families,” said Rad Kivette, CEO of VinaCapital Foundation.
The FedEx Delivers Heartbeats program has helped more than 8,000 children since 2011 and improved the quality of life for families and communities by providing the underprivileged with proper diagnosis and treatment of their illnesses.
Children diagnosed with a heart condition that requires surgery are placed on the national cardiac surgery waiting list. Arrangements are also made so that post-operative care does not include expensive and long trips to hospitals in HCMC, Danang or Hanoi.
