The Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital in China will accept 34 more Cambodian children this month, who are suffering from congenital heart disease.
The hospital in the city of Kunming in Yunnan province has, since 2017, successfully treated 31 youngsters from the Kingdom for free.
Linkun Ma, the vice-president of the Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital, told The Post on Monday that Cambodia’s Ministry of Health and the Chinese National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) early last year.
In the “Journey of Love from the Heart” MoU, the hospital agreed to provide free treatment for 150 Cambodian children suffering from congenital heart disease for three years between 2018 and 2020.
“On Tuesday, six Cambodian children will be sent to my hospital, while another 28 are preparing documents to be admitted at the end of this month,” Linkun said.
Doctors through Chinese NGO Yundi have since 2017 voluntarily provided health checkups for 36,000 Cambodian children, with 313 under the age of 16 were found to have had the symptoms of congenital heart disease, he said.
Thirty-one of them were admitted to the Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital for free and underwent successful surgery.
“All congenital heart diseases do not necessarily require surgery. With children who are very healthy, their hearts can get better naturally. Surgery is required if a child’s condition worsens,” Linkun said.
Siem Siv Thon, an 11-year-old girl who has had a congenital heart defect since she was a year old, will travel to China on Tuesday.
She told The Post on Monday that she found it hard to breathe and felt constantly tired. She also suffered regular headaches.
“My parents often take me to Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital in Phnom Penh, with the doctors telling my parents to be careful with my illness,” Siv Thon said.
Siv Thon’s father, Siem Phorn, said he was told by a doctor at Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital in Phnom Penh that his daughter has a congenital heart defect but the hospital was unable to perform surgery.
“I really wanted my child to recover from this condition, but I am too poor to afford the treatment."
“Fortunately, volunteer doctors from the Yundi NGO carried out a check-up and told me that they can treat her for free in China, as well as pay the passport and visa fees, and travel and food expenses. We will set off for China on Tuesday morning,” Phorn said.
Yundi director Luo Zhi said the Cambodian children who were previously treated had recovered.
“We have helped 31 Cambodian children who had heart disease from birth. They have recovered now,” he said.
Rith Kanha, a 12-year-old from Battambang province, said she received successful treatment at the Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital in 2017. Yundi still visited her to monitor her situation, she added.
“I no longer have difficulty breathing or suffer headaches and chest pains,” Kanha said on Monday.
