“There are no words to fully capture the significance of this remarkable donation for the children born with serious heart defects who will now get the surgeries they need thanks to Medipost Holdings and the Netcare Foundation,” says Dr Erich Schürmann, cardiac surgeon at the Maboneng Heart & Lung Institute based at Netcare Sunninghill Hospital.

The Heart-to-Heart campaign, initiated by Medipost and Netcare, is a corporate social investment (CSI) match funding challenge to raise the necessary resources for life-saving operations for children born with congenital heart defects. Medipost Holdings was the first to pledge its donation when the group put forward R360 000 towards the specialised procedures for paediatric cardiac patients in need, via the Maboneng Foundation, a non-profit organisation that raises funds and co-ordinates sponsorship of surgeries for South African children afflicted with congenital heart defects. 

The Netcare Foundation, which is the CSI arm of the Netcare Group, then matched the donation, thereby doubling the initiative’s reach for positively impacting children’s lives.  

“An investment in the health of children is an investment in the future of our society, and it is an immense privilege to support the Maboneng Foundation’s efforts to secure the resources to assist children requiring heart surgery,” says Rentia Myburgh, sales and marketing director of the Medipost Holdings group of companies, comprising Medipost Pharmacy, MediLogistics, Kawari Wholesaler and Distributor and the Medi Training Academy.

“We were deeply touched to learn that the Netcare Foundation matched our donation in support of this important cause.”

Commenting on the initiative, Jacques du Plessis, managing director of Netcare’s hospital division says cardiac surgeons, cardiologists, anaesthetists, perfusionists and allied health care professionals of the Maboneng Heart & Lung Institute, have committed their time and expertise free of charge in assisting patients referred by the Maboneng Foundation. 

“In a year during which such life-saving procedures have virtually come to a standstill, as a result of COVID-19, we felt compelled to do our bit to ensure that the life-saving work being done by this dedicated team of healthcare professionals could go ahead in the coming weeks

“The state-of-the-art paediatric cardiothoracic centre based at Netcare Sunninghill Hospital in Johannesburg is the largest of its kind in Africa and treats children from all over the African continent and the work of the institute has already given many highly compromised children a chance at life.

“Unfortunately, there remains an enormous need for these often highly complex paediatric heart operations for thousands of children in our country, and the region,” notes Du Plessis.

According to the Maboneng Foundation, approximately 10,000 babies are born with a congenital heart defect in South Africa each year. “Only about 10% of these babies are operated on and go on to live a full and healthy life. The disturbing reality is that only a fraction of babies born with a heart defect receive the needed surgical interventions in time,” Dr Schürmann says.

“It is only through the generosity of corporates and individuals that the Maboneng Foundation is able to secure the resources we need to help more children as early as possible for optimal outcomes. Our sincerest thanks to Medipost Holdings and Netcare, as well as to the Maboneng Heart & Lung Institute specialists who will perform the procedures in the coming days.

“While the beneficiaries aren’t old enough to realise the significance of your support yet, they will be one day as a result of it. In the meantime, we thank you on their behalf for giving these children the ultimate gift – a chance at life.”

Mande Toubkin, general manager: emergency, trauma, transplant and corporate social investment at Netcare adds: “Through collective efforts so much more can be achieved where it is needed most. We hope that the funding raised through the Heart-to-Heart campaign will secure a brighter future for more children with life-threatening heart conditions to enable them to thrive and go on to make their mark in the world.”