Dr Hanan Al Kuwari, Dr Fathy Saoud and Professor Sir Madgi Yacoub during the signing ceremony.
DOHA: Twenty children with serious heart ailments from conflict zones across region will undergo surgery at the Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) following a new agreement between Qatar Foundation, HMC and the UK-based charity Chain of Hope.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed yesterday to provide quality medical treatment to children with heart diseases.
The project began more than three years ago and initially focused on providing the much-needed medical help to children in Iraq. The MoU has expanded the scope of the project to include conflict zones across the region, with humanitarian assistance being an important element of the combined effort.
The agreement will pave the way for 20 children with life-threatening cardiovascular birth defects and severe conditions to come to Qatar and receive world-class treatment from the paediatric cardiac surgery team at HMC under Sir Madgi Yacoub’s leadership.
The children will be identified through Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub’s Chain of Hope international charity, whose work is informed by projects being undertaken by Qatar Cardiovascular Research Center.
The signing ceremony at Qatar Foundation headquarters was attended by Dr Fathy Saoud, President of Qatar Foundation; Dr Hanan Al Kuwari, Managing Director of HMC, and Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub, President of the Chain of Hope charity.
The three organisations have pledged to collaborate in order to achieve the best outcome for the young patients who come from developing countries and do not have access to such critical care.
“The role that Qatar Foundation is playing in advancing medical care for these children represents the essence of our mission to secure a better life not only for the nation, but for the region, and the world. The wider population will undoubtedly benefit from these new available resources,” explained Dr Saoud.
Al Kuwari expressed her appreciation for being able to provide corrective surgery and treatment to children who would have otherwise been deprived of the care they deserve.
“Hamad Medical Corporation is proud to be working with Qatar Foundation and supporting Chain of Hope by enabling children with congenital heart disease and their families to come to Qatar and benefit from our life-saving care.”
Sir Yacoub said, “I am extremely grateful to our partners at HMC and Qatar Foundation, in particular to H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, whose enthusiastic support for this project has been instrumental in making it a reality.”
The Chain of Hope charity was set up in 1995, with the dual aim of establishing high quality paediatric cardiac services in developing countries and of providing children from disadvantaged backgrounds with life-saving specialist treatment in host countries.
Three children have already undergone surgeries in Qatar under the programme. They are Mustapha Guennouni from Morocco, Armish Khan from Pakistan, and Fatima Saif from Yemen, who remains under the care of HMC’s dedicated team of professionals. She will return home within the next couple of days.
The Peninsula
