100 heart surgeries performed in Egypt under Zayed Giving Initiative

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ABU DHABI, 4th July 2017 (WAM) -- A UAEEgyptian volunteer medical team performed more than 100 cardiac surgeries this year on children and elderly patients in Egyptian villages, as part of the Zayed Giving Initiative.

This step is being implemented within the framework of the UN Global Humanitarian Campaign aimed at reducing the suffering of children and elderly patients, and is based on the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan to make 2017 the #Year of Giving.

This initiative is part of an annual programme to treat heart patients through mobile clinics and hospitals under the supervision of Emirati, Egyptian and international experts. It is a joint initiative by Dar Al Ber Society, Sharjah Charity International, and SaudiGerman Hospitals in cooperation with many government bodies, and private and non-profit organisations in an exceptional model of volunteer work, social coherence and human giving.

Humanitarian Action Ambassador, Dr. Reem Othman said that the programme has received support from many volunteer health associations as it creates a paradigm shift in the services provided to heart patients.

She highlighted that the medical team organised more than 55 field camps in the last few years in different Egyptian governorates and performed thousands of heart surgeries on children and elderly patients. They developed the heart centre at Sheikh Zayed Hospital by adding an advanced catheterisation unit and preparing a heart surgery unit, besides establishing an intensive care unit at Ain Shams University.

Dr. Adel Al Shameri, CEO of the Zayed Giving Initiative, Chairman of the Emirates Programme for Community and Specialised Volunteering and Emirates Doctors President, said that UAEEgyptian medical volunteer camps are continuing their humanitarian missions in Egyptian villages.

He added that more than 950,000 children and elderly patients have benefited in the last few years. Over 2,000 heart surgeries have also been performed at the Sheikh Zayed Hospital in Sheikh Zayed City, the Ain Shams University Hospital, and the Saudi-German Hospital in Cairo, he continued.

Egyptian surgeon Prof. Morsi Amin said that the surgeries are being carried out within the framework of an agreement signed recently to organise over 100 medical camps and perform more than 1,000 heart surgeries. This is part of the Zayed Giving Initiative to implement joint action between volunteer medical teams and promote cooperation with Emirati and Egyptian institutions.

Al Anoud Al Agami, Executive Director of the Emirates Volunteer Centre, said that the volunteers of the Global Humanitarian Campaign have presented an exceptional model of teamwork and community assistance by completing thousands of volunteer hours across the world.