The International Children's Heart Foundation's (ICHF) mission is to provide medical care to children in underdeveloped countries with congenital or acquired heart defects. Since 1994, ICHF medical teams have operated on almost 2000 children in 17 different countries.

We made our first trip to Kiev, Ukraine in November 1994 and our second trip in May 1996. On our third trip in April 2004, our team split its time between Kiev and Kharkiv. We have now operated on 87 children in Ukraine. With the help of generous medical supply companies, we have provided over $300,000 in donated medical supplies and equipment.

In July 1995, eight Ukrainian doctors were provided grants by the ICHF to come to the United States for advanced training at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center and the University of Tennessee. With the education provided in the United States and with the training and experience

provided by our teams that have visited Kiev, the Kiev doctors have now been able to operate on over 3600 children with congenital heart defects. Our goal is to continue helping the Ukrainian physicians become educated and experienced in the treatment of children with congenital heart defects so that they can function independently and no longer require our services. But for now, much more help is needed in Kharkiv.

Medical Mission #95 - April 2004

The Rotary District 7470 Gift of Life Program and the ICHF teamed up to provide cardiac operations to 30 children at the Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery in Kiev and at the Kharkiv Surgical Hospital in Kharkiv, Ukraine. With a $28,000 grant from the Rotary District 7470 Gift of Life Program, the ICHF assembled a six-member team of volunteer doctors and nurses who traveled to Kiev and Kharkiv from April 1-15, 2004.

With the help of generous medical supply companies, we were able to provide over $157,000 of medical supplies and equipment for the children's operations on this trip. FedEx shipped the supplies free of charge.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the Rotary District 7470 Gift of Life Program for making this trip possible. With your help, 30 children received life-saving operations. The parents and grandparents of these children are extremely grateful that their children have been given the chance to live longer healthier lives.