Our Hearts Are In El Salvador:Home

The Program

Gift of Life (GOL) began work in El Salvador in 1988. Louis Auricchio, then the President of Gift of Life, Inc. in New York worked to create the program with Salvadoran Rotarians and others. Over the years, more than 200 Salvadoran children received the gift of life in hospitals throughout the United States.

Gift of Life International (GOLI) chose El Salvador as its 2010 country of focus and sent 117 Salvadoran children to 25 GOL affiliated hospitals in 13 countries. This dramatic show of GOL’s vast network motivated Rotarians, healthcare professionals, government officials and hospital administrators from around the world to dedicate resources to help develop a sustainable pediatric cardiac program in El Salvador.

We have instituted a 5-year strategic plan which provides for 5 medical training missions per year as well as the acquisition of necessary equipment and supplies to ensure that the Salvadoran Pediatric Cardiac Surgical Team has the support necessary to operate on over 150 children each year. In 2011, 159 children were operated on at Hospital Bloom in San Salvador and we have set a goal for 200 children to be operated on by the Salvadoran Team in 2012. The primary focus of the training missions remains the development of the doctor’s and nurse’s skills. Missions are structured to focus on specific ailments. Multi-Disciplinary conferences have been scheduled to support the cohesiveness of the team and their ability to work together in a more coordinated fashion leading to better patient outcomes.

In addition to the development of the Surgical Team, significant efforts have been undertaken to enlist reliable funding to sustain the program. The Salvadoran Government and Salvadoran business community have been supporters of our efforts to fund the development of our program. This includes the acquisition of vital equipment and supplies. We have received great support from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Digicel El Salvador has been the leading supporter of our efforts to help the children in their own country. Additionally, we have begun efforts to raise the monies needed to construct the new National Cardiac Center in San Salvador, El Salvador.

Our vision is to create a National Cardiac Center staffed by well-trained Salvadoran medical professionals by the year 2015 which will be sustained by the Salvadoran Government and Salvadoran business community. Salvadorans will be empowered to care for Salvadorans resulting in 200 children per year receiving care at this facility.

Lastly, every child that receives a surgery through our program is eligible to be entered into our Nutritional Assistance Program. Providing the family meets our financial criteria for assistance, the child and their family will receive nutritional assistance for a period of up to one year. Additionally, one parent will be provided with vocational training and all school-age children will be required to attend school. To date, over 200 children and their families have received aid through this program. Salvadoran and U.S. Rotary Clubs have been instrumental in supporting this program.

Our Strategic Partners In The ‘Our Hearts Are In El Salvador’ Program

• Latidos De Esperanza
• Digicel El Salvador
• Gift Of Life Florida
• Gift Of Life Los Angeles
• Gift Of Life District 7500
• Gift Of Life New Jersey (Rotary District 7470)
• Rotary International
• NECO
• Countess Moira Foundation
• Joan Wismer Foundation
• Chocolates Melher
• Rotary Club Of The Pelhams
• Rotary Club Of San Salvador Cuscatlan
• Rotary Club Of San Salvador
• Rotary Club Of San Salvador Noroeste
• Rotary Club Of Santa Ana
• Rotary Club Of Sirama San Miguel
• Rotary Club Of Santa Tecla
• Rotary Club Of San Miguel Chaparrastique
• Rotary District 5240
• Fundacion San Nicolas
• Gente Ayudando Gente
• Regalo De Vida
• Terumo
• Hearts With Hope Foundation
• University Of Michigan, C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital
• Driscoll Children’s Hospital
• Hospital Tec De Monterrey
• Project Mend A Little Heart
• Hospital Nacional De Ninos Benjamin Bloom
• Minister Of Health El Salvador
• Hospital De Diagnostico
• UPS
• FedEx
• Agnew Translation