La Chaîne de l’Espoir returns to Cambodia

The last mission was in April 2022, when a two-year protocol was signed with the Swiss Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital Foundation.

With the support and expertise of La Chaîne de l’Espoir’s medical teams over many years, Kantha Bopha Hospital opened a cardiac surgery unit in Siem Reap in 2011, thanks to La Chaîne de l’Espoir, and in 2019 in its new cardiopediatric unit in Phnom Penh.

Although the medical teams at Kantha Bopha have been autonomous for several years in the treatment of simple heart diseases, they still require expertise in the treatment of complex heart diseases, particularly in infants. With Dr. Ponn Ladin and his team, trained by La Chaîne de l’Espoir, six children aged 1 to 12 underwent open-heart surgery in Siem Reap, and a further six children underwent interventional catheterization. A further six children aged 3 months to 3 years underwent surgery in Phnom Penh with Dr. Sok Lay and Dr. Ladin, with excellent results. Nearly 70 children were seen in consultation with echocardiography at both sites.

La Chaîne de l’Espoir would also like to offer its Echoes® system, remote cardiac echocardiography sessions in real time for the detection, correct diagnosis and referral of children to be scheduled for surgery during missions.
This cooperation agreement provides for the extension of training to other specialties such as laparoscopy and orthopedics, for which missions are planned.

Dr. Beat RICHNER, founder of the Kantha Bopha Hospital Foundation, opened his 1st pediatric hospital in 1992. To date, 5 hospitals in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh have been opened, providing free care for 85% of Cambodia’s sick children in need of treatment, hospitalization or surgery. Dr. Beat Richner passed away in 2018; Dr. Denis Laurent has since been the director of the Kantha Bopha hospitals.

La Chaîne de l’Espoir is an international NGO founded in 1994 and present in nearly 30 countries. Its mission is to strengthen healthcare systems to give everyone, especially children, the same chances of survival and development.