Save a Child’s Heart (SACH), an Israeli humanitarian organization providing free cardiac healthcare to children in countries where such care is limited or nonexistent, recently treated 25 children suffering from congenital heart defects in Zambia.

The mission, conducted in the Zambian capital of Lusaka, brought together an international team of medical professionals from Israel’s Wolfson Medical Center (WMC, where SACH is based), Tanzania’s Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) and Zambia’s National Heart Hospital (NHH).

The team included cardiologists, surgeons, anesthesiologists, ICU specialists, technicians and nurses. Over the course of four days, the medical professionals performed dozens of open-heart surgeries at NHH.

Additionally, the team performed catheterizations, advanced procedures that allow for the repair of heart defects in children without the need for open-heart surgery.

SACH will donate essential medical supplies and a portable echocardiography machine, utilized in both the operating room and catheterization lab, to help local teams build on the success of the mission.

Working closely with Zambia’s Health Ministry since 2017, SACH has treated more than 100 Zambian children and trained local medical professionals in advanced cardiac care in Israel.

The latest mission was led by Tanzania’s Dr. Godwin Godfrey Sharau, and Zambia’s Dr. Mudaniso Kumani Ziwa, both of whom trained in Israel under the mentorship of WMC Director of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Dr. Lior Sasson.

“The specialized training they received at Wolfson Medical Center has empowered them to perform complex heart surgeries and train others, creating a ripple effect that extends far beyond Israel,” Sasson said.

“Witnessing the successful collaboration of these skilled professionals, who were once our trainees, fills me with pride and hope for the future of children with heart disease around the world.”

Ziwa added: “Thanks to the training and resources provided by Save a Child’s Heart, we are now equipped to deliver world-class care to children in Zambia. This mission signifies the start of a brighter future for countless families and the continued growth of our center of excellence toward achieving global standards.”

For more information on Save a Child’s Heart, the countries from which its patients have come over the years, and how to donate or volunteer, click here.