In Zambia, Israeli team helps train country’s first generation of pediatric cardiac surgeons
Reporter at The Times of IsraelAfter traveling over 600 miles with his father from a remote village in northwest Zambia, 9-year-old Richard Mbimbi underwent heart surgery at the National Heart Hospital in Lusaka on July 13.Richard had rheumatic heart disease, an incapacitating condition that developed after a routine strep throat infection went untreated due to his family’s lack of access to antibiotics. The condition damaged two of Richard’s heart valves.A team of pediatric cardiac surgeons, nurses, and anesthesiologists from Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) at Sylvan Adams Children’s Hospital at Wolfson Medical Center in the central Israeli city of Holon traveled to Zambia to supervise Richard’s surgery.“My son is good,” Richard’s father, Robert Mbimbi, told The Times of Israel by telephone after the surgery. “The Zambian and Israeli doctors helped save the life of my child.”The Israeli medical team assisted in 10 pediatric open-heart surgeries during their week-long mission at…
An Israeli medical team from Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) at Wolfson Medical Center recently completed a week-long mission in Lusaka, Zambia, where they performed 10 pediatric open-heart surgeries and mentored local medical staff. This initiative is part of a $3 million cooperative program between SACH and Zambia, which began in 2007, aimed at developing the country's pediatric cardiac care capabilities. During the mission, a new $200,000 LivaNova S-5 heart-lung machine, donated by the American Jewish Committee and the Bergman Family Charitable Foundation, was unveiled, marking the second such machine in Zambia.
- The mission focused on training Zambian doctors, including Dr. Zakias Moonde Muulu, who is completing a six-year SACH fellowship in Israel and will be Zambia's second pediatric heart surgeon upon his return.
- Dr. Hagi Dekel, a pediatric cardiac surgeon from Wolfson Medical Center, emphasized that the primary goal is "to train the personnel, to strengthen the doctors on the ground, and to build their self-esteem and confidence."
- SACH, an Israeli humanitarian organization, has treated nearly 8,500 children from 75 countries and provides fellowship training for medical professionals, mainly from Africa, to establish advanced cardiac services in their home countries.
- Israel's ambassador to Zambia, Ofra Farhi, stated, "This combination of the surgical mission and the unveiling of the new heart-lung machine demonstrates our long-term commitment to strengthening Zambia’s healthcare system through training, technology, and partnership."
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