Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospitals provided examination, treatment and operations to more than 70,000 sick children during the month of April, according to its latest report.

During the same period, more than 8,000 pregnant women received checkups and 1,679 infants were born.

There were 57,896 outpatients, with 11,226 being admitted. 247 patients were treated for dengue fever, while 2,103 surgical procedures were performed on children – 67 of them open heart surgeries or catheterisations.

“The Kantha Bopha Foundation’s hospitals all provide their treatment free of charge, regardless of political affiliation, helping people in a truly humanitarian way,” added the report.

The organisation reiterated calls for financial support, noting that it has created a KHQR code in both dollars and riel that can be used with all of the Kingdom’s banking apps.

“The code allows for the easy facilitation of donations from philanthropists, in order to bring smiles to the children who are the future of Cambodia, through the continued operations of our five hospitals,” it added.

An April 30 social media post by the foundation detailed several examples of its work.

“The hepato-gastroenterology service of the Jayavarman VII Hospital (Kantha Bopha III) in Siem Reap province rescued a boy by performing gastroscopy and banding esophageal varices (enlarged veins in the esophagus) caused by cirrhosis of the liver,” it said.

It also described the case of a 13-year-old boy from Stung Treng, who was severely anaemic. The boy received four bags of blood transfusions.

“On April 18, we saved the life of a young girl who was suffering from a ‘bezoar’, or distended stomach, due to years of swallowing large quantities of bubble gum. Following x-rays, two gastrointestinal surgeries were required to remove the bezoar,” continued.

The hospital issued a warning to all parents and guardians to closely monitor the diets of the children in their care.