At the end of the day

At the close of theatre yesterday afternoon 10 Cambodian kids had received life changing surgery.

Time and time again you hear about the resilience on the children, however, each time you see a kid post op, you are instantly in awe, it’s certainly nothing short of admirable. You often find yourself thinking “If I was in their shoes I would be dealing with it a lot differently” and it often forces me to look at my life and review the way I approach things, making sure I am looking at life in the best way possible.

These kids, after receiving their heart surgery are now some of the richest kids in Cambodia, because they have received a surgery and have been presented with an opportunity that unfortunately so many other kids cannot receive.

You often hear through the grape vine some of the kids story, this year some patients spent 9 hours on the back of a motorbike to get screened, and I cringe and thought of them riding back home only a few days post op. Others are the only children in their family. Most are farmers, therefore earn as little as $1.50 USD a day, which is why then receiving this surgery is incredible.

At the end of the day, there is a sadness that the cardiac program is ceasing, However, it is important to look at the good that has come from the project. There have been many children’s lives saved and changed over the course the project, incredible skill transfer that the nurses and doctors will have for the rest of their careers, multiple memories for life, and of course incredible friends and networks made along the way.

That is what makes a successful program in my mind.