Dr. Setton 2024 Pediatric Medical Mission
Join My Efforts to Save Lives in Nigeria!
Dear friends and colleagues,
In September 2024 I will return to Oraifite, Nigeria for my third medical mission with the VOOM Foundation to offer cardiac surgery to children in Nigeria
with unrepaired congenital heart disease.
with unrepaired congenital heart disease. Our team, comprised of individuals from across multiple centers in the United States, focuses on treating children from disadvantaged backgrounds whose families do not otherwise have the resources to access the necessary medical care. We will also utilize our expertise to train and educate the local cardiac staff at the Dame Irene Okwuosa Memorial Hospital.
The VOOM foundation has taken a leading role in working to address the staggering dearth of both pediatric and adult cardiac care in Nigeria. VOOM Foundation partners with local hospitals to provide the infrastructure, equipment, and supplies necessary to start a cardiac program while sponsoring teams from abroad to travel to Nigeria to provide care to patients and train local medical personnel.
I participated in VOOM sponsored pediatric heart surgery missions in 2022 and 2023. The 2022 mission represented the first opportunity for children in Nigeria to have cardiac surgery in country since before the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the almost 30 surgeries performed, we have evaluated and diagnosed more than 100 other children. Our successes over the last 2 years notwithstanding, our efforts have only been able to address the needs of a small proportion of the many children in desperate need of cardiac care. Our team is returning to Nigeria this year propelled by past accomplishments and motivated to help even more children.
Personally, I am greatly looking forward to the opportunity to return to Nigeria to share my knowledge and expertise as a pediatric cardiologist. Just as the challenges that confront humankind in the 21st century are not confined to the borders of individual nations, congenital heart disease is widespread across the globe. So should be access to care for it. My work with the VOOM Foundation has been one of the most rewarding and memorable experiences of my professional career. Seeing the children on my second mission trip in 2023 that were operated on the previous year was impactful beyond words. Their newfound health affirmation of our cause. I can only imagine the future successes of those we care for, one of whom may ultimately make a global impact with reverberations felt back home in the United States. 
If you feel called to support our cause, I am raising funds to help cover the costs of travel, medical supplies, hospital costs for children receiving surgery, and in support of the overarching mission of the VOOM Foundation.
Check out VOOM Foundation interviewing me last November while we were in Nigeria with this video.
To read more about our inaugural pediatric medical mission in November 2022, check out this article by Columbia University.
Sincerely,
Dr. Matan Setton
Pediatric Cardiologist
Boston Children’s Hospital
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