Opening of a new office on La Réunion

La Chaîne de l’Espoir is announcing the opening of a new medical unit on Reunion Island to take in Madagascan children in need of open-heart surgery.

On September 9, Ckassie, a 3-year-old girl from Madagascar, will be the first child to be transferred by La Chaîne de l’Espoir for surgery on Reunion Island.

In partnership with the Centre Hospitalier de Soavinandriana (CENHOSOA) in Madagascar and the CHU Félix Guyon in St Denis, Réunion, this branch aims toprovide a medical solution for Madagascan children suffering from complex cardiopathies that cannot be treated in Madagascar.

The Réunion branch will be headed by Dr Jean-François Delambre, Head of the Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Department at CHU Félix Guyon. Dr. Jean-François Delambre has been involved for over 20 years in the program to treat childhood heart disease in Madagascar, alongside Dr. Nivohanta Ramamonjisoa, coordinator of La Chaîne de l’Espoir in Madagascar.

It was during one of his missions that the case of little Ckassie was brought to his attention, confirming the need for rapid intervention. The little patient will be welcomed by a host family on Reunion Island on September 9, who will take care of her throughout her stay, and will undergo surgery on September 13 by and in the department of Dr. Jean-François Delambre.

Context

A year ago, La Chaîne de l’Espoir took over the pediatric cardiac surgery support project set up by Médecins du Monde in 1994, training Madagascan medical staff in screening, diagnostics and therapeutic management, right up to closed-heart surgery, in conjunction with the medical-surgical teams from La Réunion who come on two missions a year.

Until now, La Chaîne de l’Espoir has had no alternative but to transfer young patients to mainland France for surgery in its partner facilities.

The aim of this program is to strengthen the capabilities of the Soavinandriana Hospital Center by supporting the training of local teams to become autonomous in open and closed heart surgery.

At the same time, La Chaîne de l’Espoir aims to create a new unit dedicated to cardiology and pediatric cardiac surgery at the Soavinandriana hospital in Tananarive.