WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th July, 2021) A US-based group of international pediatric cardiologists may be forced to halt operations in Libya due to lack of funding, the organization's leader Bill Novick told Sputnik.
"Our program in Libya is in danger because of lack of funding," said Novick, who leads the William Novick Global Cardiac Alliance. "Without a private sponsor or big foundation it is not realistic for us to think about going back."
In June, the group spent four weeks in Libya and conducted 47 surgeries of different levels of complexity. Since February, US doctors have operated on a total of 117 children.
Novick said each trip to Libya costs up to $200,000 per month, including airline tickets, hotel expenses, supplies, visas, as well as paying full-time staff.
The group currently started discussing details of a possible trip in August with a private sponsor. However, all recent trips with a few minor exceptions were financed by the Libyan authorities, and the doctor expressed concerns over the future of this project.
"I do not think that is going to happen this year because there is a lot of political maneuvering," he said.
Novick noted that many people in Libya regret the situation, including patients' parents, the nation's minister of health, pediatricians and pediatric cardiologists.
"I spoke to one of them recently - she was crying about a child that needs an urgent operation, and she does not know what is going to happen with this child," Novick said.
Previously, Libyan authorities were hoping to include up to 500 children on the operation list annually, he added.
William Novick Global Cardiac Alliance's teams operate on children with heart defects around the world, including underserved communities and hotspots. The group began working in Libya several years ago and has been able to conduct hundreds of surgeries despite instability. The alliance's specialists also train local doctors and nurses to conduct operations independently.
