Year 18: 'Heart for You' program innovates to help more poor children

(Chinhphu.vn) - The Military Industry and Telecommunications Group (Viettel) and the Tam Long Viet Fund - Vietnam Television announced important innovations in the "Heart for Children" program, aiming to expand the scope of support and improve the effectiveness of treatment for disadvantaged Vietnamese children with heart disease.

Heart for Children is a program that provides free congenital heart screening and surgery support for children under 18 years old in difficult circumstances - Photo: VGP/Minh Thi

Expanding the scope, categories and levels of financial support

These changes demonstrate the program's long-term commitment to contributing to the community, helping many poor children across the country access opportunities to live healthy and develop normally.

After 17 years of implementation with more than 188,850 children screened for congenital heart disease, 7,327 successful surgeries and a total donation of nearly 250 billion VND, in order to better meet practical needs and expand social impact, the "Heart for Children" program will have the following groundbreaking innovations:

Expanding the support target: Raising the support age from children under 16 to under 18 years old, to increase coverage and financial support for children under working age who unfortunately suffer from serious illnesses.

Expanding the list of medical examinations and treatments: From 22 congenital heart diseases to a total of 45 diseases. This helps the program cover not only congenital heart diseases but also common heart diseases in children. The new list has been consulted with experts from partner hospitals.

Increase financial support level: From the maximum support level of 63 million VND to 100 million VND for each case, creating opportunities for children in difficult circumstances to access modern medical methods, increase treatment effectiveness and reduce economic burden for families.

Increase the number of screening programs: It is expected to increase the number of screening programs by 20% each year, in order to maximize the number of children saved. The organizing committee will focus on poor and disadvantaged provinces/cities, wards/communes, and coordinate with medical organizations and doctors to identify groups of people at high risk of disease.

Don't leave poor children with heart disease behind

Mr. Do Minh Phuong, Deputy General Director of Viettel Group shared: "The program 'Heart for Children' is not only a responsibility, but also a special mission that we have pursued for nearly two decades. Each saved child's heart is another dream that has the opportunity to come true. Viettel is committed to continuing to expand resources and optimize support effectiveness, so that no poor child with heart disease is left behind."

After 17 years of implementation, more than 188,850 children were screened for congenital heart disease, 7,327 successful surgeries and a total donation of nearly 250 billion VND - Photo: VGP/Minh Thi

These innovations aim to optimize the efficiency of fund use, saving more children. Viettel commits to continue to closely coordinate with Tam Long Viet Fund - Vietnam Television, hospitals and communities to bring practical benefits, contributing to building a healthier and more humane society.

The program is expected to launch fundraising activities in the third quarter of 2025. This is one of the most typical and longest-running social responsibility programs initiated by Vietnamese enterprises, receiving widespread support from the community, as well as domestic and foreign enterprises, organizations and individuals.

Dr. Cao Dang Khang, Head of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, emphasized: "Expanding the list of diseases and increasing the level of financial support will create conditions for children with heart diseases, whether complex or rare, to have the opportunity to be treated with the most advanced methods. This is an important step forward for the health sector to reach and save the lives of more children in difficult circumstances, especially children in remote areas."

With its strength in technology, Viettel Group will soon cooperate with Tam Long Viet Fund - Vietnam Television to upgrade the program website with new features such as: publicizing the list of supporters, raising funds online, supporting patients to directly operate to save time and costs...

Heart for Children is a program that provides free congenital heart screening and surgery support for children under 18 years old in difficult circumstances. The activity was initiated in 2008 by Viettel Group and Tam Long Viet Fund - Vietnam Television, with the support of major hospitals. The examination activities take place in the provinces, especially remote areas, to detect diseases early and cover all treatment or surgery costs. Viettel Group maintains nearly 1,000 stores as points of receiving records and coordinates with major hospitals to improve medical capacity.

Minh Thi

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/nam-thu-18-chuong-trinh-trai-tim-cho-em-doi-moi-de-giup-duoc-nhieu-tre-em-ngheo-hon-nua-102250822190807966.htm