How Can You Help?
With some small, immediate needs
While the Romanian children stole my heart, the pediatricians, surgeons and critical care nurses at
at the Institute of Cardiovascular Disease at the Clinic Fundeni Hospital earned my
undying respect. They are doing a remarkable job with about one-tenth of the resources
found at even the smallest hospital in the States. The doctors and nurses who have turned
down offers to go to France, Canada, and the States to earn more money have stayed in Romania
because of their dedication to the children and to their dream of building a children's
heart foundation and pediatric medical program for their country.
During the time Romania suffered under
a Communist dictatorship, there was a lack of free-flowing scientific information from
the outside world. A great deal of medical research did not make it through the Iron
Curtain. As a result, one of the immediate needs is current research and medical knowledge about
highly-complicated heart defects and the new surgery techniques used to repair them. This is information
that is readily available to all doctors and medical students here, but it is expensive.
Getting several specific medical
journals and periodicals, and a couple of the new specialty pediatric cardiology text books, into
the hands of the doctors, and the new medical student residents and interns, will be a huge benefit. (The
people who publish "Pediatric Cardiology" and the
folks who publish "The New England Journal Of Medicine" have
already responded with free subscriptions to their journals, and
the stack of "Pediatric Cardiology" back issues
has already arrived at the hospital in Bucharest!)
Another
immediate need is for a set of surgical instruments that are just for pediatric heart surgery. This will
allow the surgeons to use delicate instruments made only for children's hearts instead of the adult-sized
tools. Everything on the instrument list is from
the Pilling Weck Cardiac, Thoracic & Vascular Products
Catalog.
Dr. Alin Nicolescu, M.D., the pediatric cardiologist at Clinic Fundeni, and Dr. Andrei
Iosifescu, M.D., the pediatric heart surgeon, gave me a list of these specific journals,
books, and surgical instruments they need. I gave them my word that I would come home and do everything
within my power to raise support to buy these few things that will make such a positive, huge difference
for them and for the children.
I'm going to give the hospital several framed photographs from this essay to hang in the lobby or
along a hallway. On one of the framing mats there is going to be printed a list naming
everyone who helped provide these items to
donate to the children, the doctors, and to the hospital, along
with the city where the donor lives. This will be a daily reminder that people from all
over the world care about them and the children of Romania. If you'd like to help, and if you want to
be on the donor list, or donate in memory of someone you love and have his or her name on the framed list,
please let me know soon.
New Media for Non Profits, along with Gift Of Life International, are 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt charities.
If you're an American taxpayer your support for this cause is a charitable contribution.
Any amount will move us toward the goal, and no contribution is too small. Please
write to me and I'll tell
you what you can do to help fill this wish list as soon as possible.
Thank you so very much. -- Donald Winslow
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