Over the past 2 decades, the Da Nang Association for Supporting Poor and Disadvantaged Women and Children has facilitated nearly 1,200 children with congenital heart disease to access free medical examinations and surgery. This not only makes Da Nang become one of the few localities that provide children with free screening tests for the early detection of congenital heart complaints, but also contributes to opening up a bright future for less fortunate circumstances.

A kid undergoing a free screening test for the early detection of congenital heart complaints in Ngu Hanh Son District in 2019

In the past, when children were found to have congenital heart disease, they had to be taken to Ha Noi or Ho Chi Minh City for treatment. Even worse, child patients had to wait many months to undergo surgery.

Stemming from that situation, in 2003, the Da Nang Association for Supporting Poor and Disadvantaged Women and Children organised a programme to treat congenital heart disease for poor and unfortunate children free-of-charge with the motto “All children with congenital heart disease must be treated promptly”.

Since then, the programme’s management board has actively got involved in raising funds for free heart surgery for children from generous organisations, individuals, businesses and many benefactors at both home and abroad.

Till date, after nearly 20 years of implementation, 687 free screening tests for the early detection of congenital heart complaints have been offered to nearly 400,000 children. Through examinations, as many as 2,000 children have been diagnosed with congenital heart disease. Free surgery has been provided with to 1,159 heart-problem children, at a total cost of more than VND53 billion.

In the city's localities, Hoa Vang District has more than 9,000 children with difficult circumstances, and has a high rate of children with serious diseases and congenital heart disease.

President of the Hoa Vang District chapter of the Da Nang Association for Supporting Poor and Disadvantaged Women and Children Tran Thi Loc remarked that her unit coordinates with the Cardiology Center under the Da Nang Hospital to organise three free screening tests for the early detection of congenital heart complaints for local children at health stations and schools every year.

As a result, 461 out of the screened 48,000 children have been detected with congenital heart disease. 323 of them have been funded 100% of surgery costs totalling more than VND9 billion.

According to Chairman of the Da Nang Association for Supporting Poor and Disadvantaged Women and Children Huynh Van Hoa, over the past time, the programme becomes a reliable support for poor families with children with congenital heart disease, thereby bringing a better life and a brighter future for them and contributing to ensuring the city’s social welfare and beautifying the image of the city.

In order to promote the achieved results, in mid-August 2022, the Association signed a joint cooperation agreement with the health sector and the education and training sector to deploy the congenital heart disease treatment programme for disadvantaged poor children in the city during the 2022-2026 period.

Under the agreement, the focus is on providing free screening tests for the early detection of congenital heart complaints for children aged 0 to 18, as well as facilitating them to access the best medical technologies and keeping their aesthetics during surgery.

Reporting by THIEN DUYEN - Translating by M.DUNG