Ching is a 22-month-old girl from Cambodia. She is the youngest of two siblings, with one brother and one sister. Her siblings go to school and her parents are farmers. Ching likes playing with her siblings, painting, and looking at picture books. Three months ago, Ching fell down while she was walking. She seemed to be injured, and when her parents took her to a local clinic, they found that her left hip was dislocated, making one leg shorter than the other. Due to this condition, Ching cannot walk easily, and overtime her condition will worsen. When Ching learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, she traveled for three-and-a-half hours seeking treatment. On July 1st, surgeons at CSC will perform a joint stabilization procedure to change position of hip and allow it to develop normally. Once the proper position of her hip has been restored, Ching will be able to walk easily. Now, Ching needs help to fund this $518 procedure. Ching's mother said, "I hope that my daughter will be better, have no pain, and walk easily."

Ratha has one sister and one brother. She attends kindergarten and already enjoys Khmer books and reading as her favorite subject. Ratha likes to drink milk :) and she wants to be a doctor when she grows up. Her mother is a rice farmer and her father is a construction worker. Ratha was born with scoliosis. Her parents took her to a local public hospital for treatment, but unfortunately their surgeries made her worse off. She is in pain and it is now hard for her walk. She has now been absent from school during this time and needs a corrective spinal surgery with rods distraction to treat her scoliosis. Ratha's mother shared, "she can't do anything, which makes me worry very much about her treatment. I hope that the surgery will be done well, so my daughter can walk again and return to school."

Su is a 43-year-old woman from Burma. She lives with her husband and four-year-old son in Shwe Pyi Thar Township in Burma. Her husband works as a day laborer at a construction site while she does all the household chores. Su was diagnosed with a heart condition that involves a malformation of her mitral valve, the valve between the left atrium and left ventricle. This valve controls the flow of blood, but certain conditions cause blood to flow backward or the valve to narrow. In 2010, Su started to experience severe coughing so she went to see a doctor at Tun Foundation Clinic in Yangon. The doctor noticed that she has abnormal breathing and told her that she has a heart problem and she would not be able to have baby. The doctor also provided her with three days’ worth of medication and suggested she go to Yangon General Hospital (YGH) to meet with a cardiologist. The next day, she went to YGH and she received an echocardiogram and x-ray. Following this, the doctor told her that she would need surgery right away. She was told that the surgery would cost around five million kyat (approx. 5,000 USD) but she could not afford to pay such a large sum. When she told the doctor this, she received medication to stabilize her heart condition and was provided with a follow-up appointment. In 2015, she started to feel tired whenever she walked for more than 10 minutes or if she used the stairs. She went back to Tun Foundation Clinic where she received medications to stabilize her condition. Currently, she cannot sleep or eat well. She also suffers from fatigue and rapid breathing. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund a mitral valve replacement for Su. The treatment is scheduled to take place on February 27th and, once completed, will hopefully allow her to live more comfortably. Su said, “I worry a lot that I will have a stroke if I do not take my medication daily. But it is had for my husband to come up with money [for my medication]. I want to live long with my family. When I talked to Watsi's partner BCMF, I felt like I had been released from the worry of paying for my surgery. Thank you so much!”

Dymitry is a 13-year-old student from Haiti. Dymitry lives in a neighborhood of Port-au-Prince with his mother and grandparents. He is in the sixth grade and especially likes engineering and math. Dymitry has a cardiac condition called Tetralogy of Fallot. This condition involves several related defects including a hole between the two lower chambers of the heart, and a muscular blockage of one of the valves. Fortunately, Dymitry will be able to fly to Canada to receive treatment. On April 2nd, he will undergo cardiac surgery, during which surgeons will close the hole in his heart with a patch, and remove the muscular blockage from his valve. Another organization, The Herbie Fund, is contributing $25,000 to pay for surgery. Dymitry's family also needs help to fund the costs of surgery prep and transport. The $1,500 bill covers labs, medicines, and checkup and followup appointments. It also supports passport obtainment and the social workers from our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, who will accompany Dymitry's family overseas. Dymitry told us, "I am looking forward to learning how to play soccer after my surgery!"

Immaculate is fast asleep on her mother’s lap. She was woken quite early to come to the hospital. A little bump, almost invisible, sits on her fontanel. Following results from CT scan, little Immaculate has been diagnosed with a dermoid cyst, a sac-like growth, that is present at birth and a craniotomy surgery is recommended. According to the doctor, the cyst sits on a very sensitive vein and if it ruptures Immaculate risks death. Surgery to close it will minimize such risks especially as she grows older, is more active, and playing with children who may accidentally hit the bump and cause the rupture. Immaculate lives with her parents and siblings in a one-room house in Central Kenya. The surgery is a cost that Immaculate’s parents cannot bear. They both are employed casually in a neighbor’s farm with an irregular daily wage of around Kes200 each. Immaculate’s elder brother is a student in class one and doing fine. With a very menial income, they are not able to raise the funds needed. “I will be glad if we get help,” says Immaculate’s mother.

Joe is a 12-year-old student from Thailand. He moved to Mae Sot in early 2019, in search for better education. He now lives at a boarding house while studying at a migrant learning center. Joe noticed his blurred vision since he was five years old. Although he told his parents about it, his parents thought it was not that serious; they just told him that his eye sight will get better with time. As Joe did not experience any pain, aside from blurry vision, Joe stopped complaining about his problem to his parents. Joe continue to have a blurred vision, especially in his left eye. After he moved to Mae Sot, he told his uncle about his eye sight. His uncle made arrangements for him to meet with a medic, who later found that Joe has a cataract on his left eye and that it needs to be fixed in order for Joe to regain a clear vision in his left eye. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund lens replacement surgery for Joe. On December 10th, doctors will perform a lens replacement, during which they will remove Joe's natural lenses and replace them with an intraocular lens implant in each eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $1,500 procedure. Joe said, “I don’t know yet of what I want to be in the future, but all I’m looking forward to is to ride a bicycle and play with my friends without any difficulty seeing.”

Kyu is 38-year-old-woman from Burma. She owns a farm which she is able to rent out for 200,000 kyat (approx. 200 USD) for each season. In her free time, she enjoys doing housework such as cooking and cleaning. Kyu was diagnosed with a heart condition that involves a malformation of the mitral valve, the valve between the left atrium and left ventricle that controls the flow of blood. Currently, Kyu has difficulty breathing, chest pain as well as pain in her neck. She also cannot walk fast or for long distances because she gets tired easily. Kyu is unable to sleep well for she worries about her condition. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund a mitral valve replacement for Kyu. Once her treatment is completed, it will hopefully allow her to live more comfortably. “If I feel better after surgery, I want to work and save money for my daughter,” said Kyu.

Iqram is a young boy from Tanzania. Iqram is a two-year-old boy, the only child to his parents, who struggles to stretch his right hand due to a burn scar contractures. The playful boy was playing with his friends when he went back to his mother's house and by accident, fell on hot milk sustaining burns on his right side, especially his right hand. He spent a month in the hospital where the wounds were nursed and successfully healed. However, his right elbow skin healed with contractures. The contractures restrain Iqram's ability to fully stretch and use his hand. The family has not been able to raise funds for a contracture release surgery, but their hope for help remains. Iqram's father is a casual labourer at a factory and his mother a housewife. Their income is little to meet the treatment cost. They hope to have Iqram's hand released and be able to use it with ease especially when he joins the school. Iqram's aunt referred them to our facility when she learnt of an outreach program and upon review, he had contracture release recommended. Iqram's parents appeal for financial assistance Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Iqram receive treatment. On September 27th, surgeons at their care center will perform a burn contracture release surgery to The surgery will allow Iqram to fully stretch his hand, restoring ability to utilize it. Now, he needs help to fund this $832 procedure. Iqram’s mother says, “My son’s life will be very challenging if he not able to have his hand corrected please help him."