Day and night they are at the bedside, handling difficult situations with patients as well as with parents, who often need complex information explained to them. Children who recover and can be discharged home are happy, and their parents are overjoyed. But what then? The child is at home, out of immediate danger, yet the time spent in hospital or undergoing treatment at home takes its toll.
Children are often unable to reintegrate among their healthy peers. They miss kindergarten or school, don’t do sports, don’t meet other children, and are excluded from the normal everyday life of a healthy child.
The Children’s Cardiac Center Foundation has been caring for little fighters burdened with a difficult fate for 31 years. That’s why, a few years ago, it decided that in addition to purchasing vital, life-saving equipment, material and technical gear, and supporting staff training, it would give patients much more. We call it comprehensive care.
And speaking of angels—eight years ago, the company SLOVCLEAN took us under its wings, deciding to be our exclusive supporter in our effort to care for children with heart conditions even after they are discharged from hospital. Thanks to their financial contribution, we were able to launch the educational project “Žijem naplno” (“Living to the Fullest”). This project has been exceptionally successful, and we have already educated nearly 100 children through our special education teachers, who visit children in the comfort of their homes and help them overcome disabilities caused by their illness, optimize their neuropsychological development, and provide tailored catch-up learning to meet their needs. It’s said there is nothing more beautiful than when the stronger join forces to help the weaker. In this case, it’s children whose hearts are not healthy. And we, together with our long-standing partner SLOVCLEAN, are doing our best to change their lives.
Two years ago, Deutsche Telekom (DT) came up with the idea of involving our children in the Cognity project. These are virtual-reality goggles with custom software developed specifically for patients of the Children’s Cardiac Center. They can be used in the hospital environment and also as an interactive educational aid for children with heart disease at home. DT, in cooperation with the Children’s Cardiac Center, created a special training plan that transports the child into virtual reality, allowing the young patient to train psychomotor skills through play.
However, this project cost a five-figure amount. And this is where SLOVCLEAN once again showed its big heart, not hesitating to fund the entire project. “We’re pleased to be part of another groundbreaking project of the Foundation. We believe that with our financial support we can make hospital stays easier for pediatric patients, help them through examinations that are not always pleasant, and last but not least, help them catch up on developmental delays caused by serious heart disease—using the most modern technologies with exceptional therapeutic outcomes,” said Ing. Marian Lalik, CEO of SLOVCLEAN.
As if that weren’t enough, soon another project arrived that is changing the lives of children with heart disease for the better outside the hospital. The Children’s Cardiac Center Foundation established the “Srdiečko” (“Little Heart”) sports club in Bratislava, Banská Bystrica, and Trenčín—because children with heart conditions can do sports, too.
Children with congenital or acquired heart disease often aren’t given the opportunity to do sports, out of concern for their health. Yet more and more research shows that most children with cardiac problems need some form of exercise. Physical activity can improve heart performance and overall blood circulation in the body. It can also reduce the number of infections. Funding was needed for this project, too. In our regular meetings with SLOVCLEAN, we agreed they would also provide financial support for this essential project. The CCC Foundation greatly values this long-term partnership, thanks to which we can help the most vulnerable. Recently, they also became part of the Foundation’s newest project, “Adopt a Cot.” It is said that some things can only be explained by the heart. Our long-standing cooperation is exactly that.
