In October 2024, when the last members of the Padua team returned to Italy, our association successfully completed its 18th mission to the Orotta Hospital in Asmara. In less than seven days, 15 cardiac surgeries were performed without complications, some of which were particularly complex both diagnostically and surgically. A significant achievement was the direct involvement of the two young surgeons who have been training with us for the past two years, Dr Beyene and Dr Michael, who for the first time in Eritrea completed 10 of these operations under our supervision.
We must also highlight the valuable contribution of our two paediatric cardiologists who, thanks to their early arrival in Asmara, carried out cardiological evaluations and echocardiograms on more than 150 children, selecting more than 60 for surgery.
In our last mission (Asmara, 8-20 March 2024) we successfully performed 16 operations on children with congenital heart disease. The team, consisting of 24 volunteers, worked in close synergy with the local medical staff, thus contributing to the development of their skills.
For the first time in Asmara, young Eritrean surgeons-in-training successfully performed one of the 16 planned operations as first responders.
Ethiopia, a country already known to our volunteers, is witnessing an improvement in its economic and social conditions. This allows for more and better medical care for the paediatric population. During our recent fact-finding visit to the national referral hospital, we visited the wards and witnessed some operations for non-complex heart diseases. We observed with admiration the work of a competent and well-coordinated team.
The intention to start a collaboration programme was confirmed. The first step will be to join the local medical team with some of our experts for the surgical treatment of heart disease with minimally invasive access.
On 12 June 2023, the 16th Cardiology/Cardiac Surgery mission at the Orotta Hospital in Asmara, (started on 26 May 2023) in which 27 volunteers participated, came to an end. The cardiological screening performed at the beginning of the mission revealed a high number of heart defects that had not received adequate treatment due to the previous pandemic.
The surgical programme started the same day the surgical team arrived and, in just 5 ½ days, in collaboration with the local medical staff, we performed 11 operations.
All the children (some of them very critical, with complex illnesses) successfully passed the surgery, returned home and will be able to lead normal lives.
