28.07.2022

The first of five Perinatal Centers, which will be equipped with hypothermia apparatus in 2022 through the sponsorship of the «Samruk-Kazyna Trust» foundation, has received a hypothermia device and an electroencephalography (EEG) monitor. This modern medical equipment will help save the lives and health of thousands of newborns in the Zhetysu region over 5 years.

The regional perinatal center in Taldykorgan needed additional equipment in the resuscitation department to treat and care for newborns with severe and moderate asphyxia at birth. Annually, the center receives around 6,000 deliveries from Alakol, Aksu, Karatal, Kerbulak, Koksu, Eskeldin, Sarkand districts, as well as Taldykorgan and Tekeli cities. All complex cases, including those via air ambulance, are directed here. The center operates 150 beds, including ten in the Pathology and Care of Premature Infants Department. It has a staff of 34 physicians and 126 healthcare professionals.

«We express immense gratitude to the ‘Samruk-Kazyna Trust’ and the ‘AYALA’ Foundation for outfitting our resuscitation unit with new equipment. Every day, we strive for all deliveries at the center to go smoothly, ensuring newborns are born healthy. For several years, we’ve dreamed of a hypothermia device and EEG monitor. Our doctors are trained to operate this equipment and care for children with hypoxic-ischemic brain injury. Each year, using available resources, we care for about 250 such children. Now, our specialists will be aided by modern medical devices. I’m confident this will reduce infant mortality rates in our region and the risk of disability from birth asphyxia in children,» noted Kanat Zhumashev, Director of the Perinatal Center of Almaty Region.

Therapeutic hypothermia needs to be applied within the first hours of a newborn’s life, offering a chance to restore brain cell functions. Without this equipment in hospitals, a child is highly likely to suffer severe functional impairments in the central nervous system or, in the worst-case scenario, could die. The hypothermia device gently cools the entire body of the newborn. Precise temperature control allows adjustments in blood flow and monitors the recovery of cells and affected areas in infants’ brains. The EEG amplitude monitor helps doctors track and effectively adjust the therapy used to save and care for newborns.

«For our country’s future, it’s crucial to preserve the life of every child. This year, we’ve provided financial support for the acquisition of equipment in 5 regions, where infant mortality rates are acute issues, as well as ensuring children’s resuscitation with advanced medical technology. We hope that these modern devices will assist doctors at the Regional Perinatal Center in Taldykorgan in saving even more children’s lives,» highlighted Alfia Adieva, CEO of the «Samruk-Kazyna Trust» Social Projects Development Fund.

In 2017, the AYALA Foundation first tested automated hypothermia in Kazakhstan. The Taldykorgan Perinatal Center received the ninth hardware complex donated by the foundation within the «Managed Hypothermia» project. Over 5 years, the hypothermia equipment from this foundation has saved more than 210 children in our country. By the end of October 2022, with the sponsorship support of the «Samruk-Kazyna Trust,» the AYALA charitable foundation will install hypothermia hardware complexes in perinatal centers in Uralsk, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Aktau, and Shymkent.

«For 15 years, our foundation has implemented an approach it considers effective charity. We equip state hospitals with modern resuscitation equipment and train neonatologists to work with it. This annually helps save thousands of children in our country, not beyond its borders. The hypothermia hardware complex saves not only lives but also helps preserve a newborn’s brain from irreversible damage due to hypoxia, enabling the child to function normally. Thanks to the ‘Samruk-Kazyna Trust’ for contributing to the health of future generations and supporting the ‘Managed Hypothermia’ project,» emphasized Aidan Suleimenova, President of the AYALA Foundation.

The AYALA Foundation operates with the main goal of assisting the government in reducing infant and child mortality and disability. Through fundraising and sponsor attraction, AYALA provides children’s resuscitation with modern medical equipment and aids in the qualification enhancement of Kazakh neonatologists. Throughout its work in projects like «Breath of Life,» «Managed Hypothermia,» and others, the foundation has delivered over 1100 units of resuscitation medical equipment to 67 healthcare institutions in Kazakhstan, amounting to approximately 2 billion tenge. Over 200,000 children have been saved in Kazakhstan due to this equipment and the knowledge doctors gained during free foundation courses.