Tenwek Cardiac Compassionate Fund

Tenwek Hospital has become the largest single provider of cardiac surgery in the country, and therefore, the region. The vast majority of our patients are children or very young adults. Our most common indication for surgery is rheumatic heart disease, which is caused by a strep throat infection as a young child that is not appropriately treated. This eventually leads to severe heart valve damage, which can only be treated surgically with valve replacement or repair. We are working to reduce the incidence of this preventable condition. However, for the coming several decades, this will continue as the leading cause of preventable death due to heart disease.

The other large category of patients we see is congenital heart disease. These are infants and children who were born with defects in their heart. Depending upon the severity, some of them die very soon after birth. There is another large group of patients in this category who survive into young childhood and even teenage years. In many cases, they will need surgical correction of the congenital defect.

Heart surgery is an expensive undertaking. This is due in large part to the sheer amount of materials and personnel needed to perform one open heart operation. The patients are generally in the hospital for 7–14 days following operation. Most of them will go home to lead long, productive lives giving praise to God for His healing.

We work with the National Health Insurance Fund to try to get as much funding for each patient as possible. However, in most cases, this funding covers about 50% of the cost of the operation and hospitalization.

The Compassionate Cardiac Surgical Fund is used to help offset the balance between what insurance pays and what it actually costs the hospital to provide the care. All patients are expected to contribute something to their care (in addition to the insurance coverage). However, so many of our rural Kenyan patients find it impossible to come up with out of pocket expenses to meet the other 50% cost. 

Your donation to the Compassionate Cardiac Surgical Fund helps to cover the cost of an individual patient receiving life-saving surgical care. Combined with a clear Gospel message to the patient about Christ’s life-giving message of healing our spiritual hearts, your donation makes a tremendous impact upon the life of a hurting heart in Africa!