NGO Steps in to Help Children With Heart Defects Ignored by Govt

Genesis Foundation has been helping children suffering from Congenital Heart Defects get access to healthcare.

Several organisations such as Genesis Foundation have been doing their bit to bring joy into the lives of children.

(Photo Courtesy: iStockPhoto)

Children’ Day falls on 14 November, on the birthdate of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India. The day is also to acknowledge universal child rights and enhance child welfare.

Several organisations such as Genesis Foundation have been doing their bit to bring joy into the lives of children. Since 2001, the non-profit organisation has been helping children suffering from Congenital Heart Defects have access to the best quality of healthcare.

This year, the foundation has touched a milestone by helping 3,000 children receive treatment for a critical illness.

The organisation works with critically ill children belonging to economically weaker sections of the society by tying up with specialised paediatric cardiac care centres all over India.

Congenital Heart Disease Common Among Kids in India

It all started when Founder Trustees Prema and Jyoti Sagar lost their 16-hour baby boy Sameer to a heart defect in 1983.

Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is the most frequently occurring birth defect and is prevalent in 9 out of 1,000 kids in India. The estimated number of children born with this disease is more than 2,00,000 every year, of which one-fifth have critical CHD, requiring intervention within the first year of life.

But currently, advanced cardiac care is available only to a minority of such children as there are multiple factors involved ranging from lack of awareness about the disease to lack of financial resources.

The coronavirus pandemic has posed as a huge deterrent as well. However, during this time one of the most remarkable surgeries was performed.

Navinasri is the youngest patient in the world to undergo an Ozaki procedure in the right chamber of her heart. She was taken for an eight-hour-surgery on 12 June 2020 and is living a pain-free life post-operation.

Navinasri, who is the youngest patient in the world to undergo an Ozaki procedure in the right chamber of her heart. (Photo Courtesy: Genesis Foundation)

Another baby girl Shravani who was given up for adoption after her father tried selling her to a child trafficker in the hospital, had a successful open-heart surgery on 20 October 2020 and is currently recovering in Telangana.