From Mongolia To Fargo, North Dakota: Doctor Comes Home And Brings Two Mongolian Teenagers With Her For Life-Saving Heart Surgery

Samaritan's Purse
Tuesday, 3 July 2001

Local Community Teams Up with Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse to Give Teens Medical Treatment Unavailable in Their Country

Susan Vitalis M.D., a physician with international relief organization Samarian's Purse, is coming home to Fargo on Friday, July 6 to give two Mongolian teenagers with serious heart defects a second chance at life.

Sixteen-year-old Luvsansharav Munkhbayar and 15-year-old Batmonkh Batchimeg will arrive in Fargo with their guardians, an interpreter, and Dr. Vitalis, courtesy of Samaritan's Purse, headed by Franklin Graham, son of Rev. Billy Graham. These are the first children Samaritan's Purse has brought to North Dakota as part of the organization's Children's Heart Project.

The Samaritan's Purse Children's Heart Project identifies children with life-threatening heart disease in countries that lack technology and training, and matches them with surgeons and hospitals in the United States that are willing to donate their time and services. A local hospital in Fargo is providing the medical treatment free of charge.

Samaritan's Purse handled travel logistics for the teenagers, their guardians, and an interpreter, and paid all travel expenses. The organization also arranged for First Lutheran Church, where Dr. Vitalis' father is a pastor, and a local individual from the church to host the children during their recovery period in the United States.

Since the program started in 1997 in response to a critical need in Bosnia, the Samaritan's Purse Children's Heart Project has brought more than 110 children to the United States for life-saving heart treatment. In addition to medical care, Samaritan's Purse provides state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment and training for doctors overseas. The machines enable doctors in those countries to better diagnose defects, identify candidates for surgery, and ensure that the children are matched with the proper specialists in the U.S.

For more information, or to contact Samaritan's Purse, see their website at: www.samaritanspurse.org