GLOBAL CONGENITAL HEART CARE
TEACHING
At MyMoyo, we believe that every child, regardless of where they are born, deserves access to life-saving cardiac care. Congenital heart defects (CHDs) are the most common birth defect worldwide, affecting nearly 1 in 100 newborns. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the lack of specialized care means that many of these children do not survive or face lifelong health challenges. Our mission is to change this reality by empowering other charities and local healthcare providers to establish and sustain their own congenital heart centers. Through our teaching and symposiums, we share the knowledge, skills, and strategies needed to deliver high-quality, equitable care for children with CHDs in underserved regions.
Why Congenital Heart Centers Matter
Congenital heart centers are specialized facilities equipped to diagnose, treat, and manage CHDs. These centers are critical because:
Early Intervention Saves Lives: Timely diagnosis and treatment can prevent complications and improve survival rates. Without access to care, over 70% of children with critical CHDs in LMICs may not survive their first year.
Specialized Expertise: Managing CHDs requires a multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, surgeons, nurses, and technicians trained in pediatric cardiac care.
Infrastructure and Equipment: Advanced medical equipment, such as echocardiograms and cardiac catheterization labs, are essential for accurate diagnosis and treatment.
In many poorer countries, these resources are scarce or nonexistent. MyMoyo’s teaching and symposiums aim to bridge this gap by providing charities with the tools and knowledge to build and operate their own congenital heart centers.
Our Approach to Teaching and Symposiums
MyMoyo’s teaching and symposiums are designed to be comprehensive, hands-on, and tailored to the unique challenges of LMICs. We focus on three core areas:
1. Clinical Training and Knowledge Transfer
Medical Procedures: We train healthcare providers on the latest techniques in pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery, including minimally invasive procedures like cardiac catheterization.
Patient Care: Our programs emphasize holistic care, teaching teams how to manage pre- and post-operative care, as well as long-term follow-up for children with CHDs.
Advanced Equipment Use: We provide training on the use and maintenance of critical medical equipment, ensuring that local teams can operate and sustain their facilities independently.
2. Setting Up and Managing a Congenital Heart Center
Infrastructure Development: We guide charities on how to design and equip a functional heart center, from securing funding to sourcing medical supplies.
Administrative Training: Effective management is key to sustainability. We teach best practices in hospital administration, including patient record systems, staffing, and quality control.
Community Engagement: Building trust within local communities is essential. We share strategies for raising awareness about CHDs and encouraging early diagnosis.
3. Sustainability and Local Empowerment
Train-the-Trainer Model: We empower local healthcare providers to become trainers themselves, ensuring that knowledge is passed on and retained within the community.
Ongoing Mentorship: After the initial training, MyMoyo offers continuous support through virtual consultations, follow-up visits, and refresher courses.
Data-Driven Improvement: We teach teams how to collect and analyze patient data to monitor outcomes and drive continuous improvement in care quality.
Impact of Our Teaching and Symposiums
Since our inception, MyMoyo has:
Trained over 50 charities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Helped establish 12 congenital heart centers in LMICs, each now serving hundreds of children annually.
Enabled life-saving care for more than 5,000 children who otherwise would not have had access to treatment.
One of our proudest achievements is the establishment of the first congenital heart center in Tanzania, where local teams now perform complex procedures independently, thanks to our training programs. This center has become a model for others in the region, demonstrating the power of sustainable knowledge transfer.
Commitment to Sustainability
At MyMoyo, sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. We believe that true impact comes not just from providing care, but from empowering local communities to provide that care themselves. Our teaching and symposiums are designed to:
Build Local Capacity: By training local healthcare providers, we ensure that the skills and knowledge remain within the community long after our direct involvement ends.
Foster Independence: Our goal is for each congenital heart center to become self-sufficient, capable of operating without ongoing external support.
Promote Equity: We work to make high-quality cardiac care accessible to all children, regardless of their socioeconomic status or geographic location.
Through our train-the-trainer model and ongoing mentorship, we ensure that the centers we help establish continue to thrive and expand their reach.
Join Us in Transforming Lives
MyMoyo’s teaching and symposiums are more than just educational events – they are a catalyst for change. By equipping charities and healthcare providers with the tools they need to set up and run their own congenital heart centers, we are building a future where no child dies from a treatable heart condition.
Whether you are a charity looking to expand your services, a healthcare provider seeking specialized training, or a donor passionate about global health equity, we invite you to join us in this life-saving mission. Together, we can ensure that every child has the chance to live a full and healthy life.