This year AmCham welcomed the Children’s Hospital Foundation into the AmCham community. The Children’s Hospital Foundation is the largest non-profit organization dedicated to improving the healthcare accessibility and quality for the children of Latvia. This year marks the 20th anniversary since the organization was founded, and during these two decades countless significant projects have been carried out, helping tens of thousands of patients of the Children’s Clinical University Hospital as well as children in need of care outside the hospital.

A few of the most notable projects carried out this year:

• “Community initiative for the social integration and human rights protection of children with autism spectre disorders (ASD) – creating a state support system” – sponsored by the Society Integration Foundation (SIF). The aim of the project was to educate the society and decision-makers about the needs of children with ASD as well as provide support for the children and their families. Throughout the project we provided 80 children with the needed therapy and developed a support framework in collaboration with the responsible government institutions.
• “Enhancing the visibility and financial capability of the Parents’ House” – sponsored by the Active Citizens Fund (AIF). The aim of the project is to attract donations for the Parents’ House – a house the Children’s Hospital Foundation opened 10 years ago which provides accommodation and emotional support for the parents and other family members of the Children’s Hospital patients.
• "The development of a standard procedure for characterizing childhood malign tumors” - a part of the “Latvian Pediatric Cancer Initiative”, sponsored by the Latvian Children’s Oncology Foundation. The aim of the project is to improve the research of pediatric cancer by enhancing the collaboration between the Hematooncology unit of the Children’s Hospital and the Latvian Biomedical Research and Study Center. There are numerous other activities carried out as part of the initiative.
• “Holistic and multi-disciplinary support for children with functional disorders and their families” – sponsored by the European Social Fund. The aim of the project is to provide the patients of the Hematooncology unit of the Children’s Hospital and their families with individually tailored social rehabilitation services.

Other activities range from providing the Children’s Hospital with needed medical equipment and scholarships for the doctors to providing support for individual patients and their families in emergency medical situations.

More about the Children’s Hospital Foundation: www.bsf.lv