Not all heroes wear capes. Some, like former cricket captain Sunil Gavaskar, simply support free heart surgeries for underprivileged children.
Mr. Gavaskar, who is part of the Heart to Heart Foundation, is raising awareness in the US about the economic barriers that prevent children from undergoing treatment for Congenital Heart Disease.
It's has been a great opening innings to the multi-city USA tour to support free heart surgeries for children in India and I am very thankful for the overwhelming participation by many across several citiesSunil Gavaskar, Former India Cricket Captain
The H2H Foundation has recently launched the "Freedom from CHD" initiative that supports free heart surgeries for children in India, by way of a multi-city tour titled "Bat-for-Life" promoted by Gavaskar in the US.
The tour has so far covered cities like New Jersey, Atlanta, Fermont California, Milpitas - San Fransisco and Chicago. As a way of acknowledgment, Gavaskar also signed a bat each for those 'batting' alongside him to provide urgent medical care to children in need.
These life-saving surgeries will be performed by the Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospitals in India, which has performed over 10,000 surgeries, free of cost, since 2012.
In a short span of six months, the H2H Foundation has funded 400 such surgeries, while 34 surgeries have been fully funded personally by the legendary cricketer, Mr. Gavaskar himself.
While the numbers are encouraging, a lot more work still remains to be done.
The Sathya Sai Sanjeevani hospitals in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Haryana have performed over 10,000 surgeries and catheter interventions since 2012, all totally free of cost. Sadly, over 36,000 children are registered and still waiting for treatment. Many will not live long if left untreatedC Sreenivas, Chairman, Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospitals
The lack of affordable medical care in India for children belonging to economically disadvantaged families results in over 250 children dying every day due to Congenital Heart Defects (CHD).
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