Global Cardiac Alliance

02/02/2026

When you're exhausted from operating all day but remember why you flew 8,000 miles to be here…👀

12 hours in the OR.Jet lag that makes your bones ache.A language barrier that requires translators for every conversation and then you see it.

A child who was dying yesterday is now breathing on their own. A mother who couldn't stop crying is now smiling. A father who carried their baby across three provinces finally exhales.

This is what they don't show you about global health work. It's not glamorous. It's grueling.

You miss birthdays and holidays. You push your body beyond what seems reasonable.

But then a tiny heart starts beating stronger. A family gets their future back. A local surgeon performs a procedure they couldn't do six months ago and suddenly, the exhaustion doesn't matter.

This is why we do what we do. Not for recognition. For moments like this. Follow us to see more of the work that matters 🫀🌱

01/30/2026

The moment that changes everything…❤️‍🩹

For months, you've watched your baby struggle. Breathing too fast. Tiring during feeds. Not growing like other children.

Doctors in your village couldn't help. You traveled to the city. More tests. More waiting.

More fear.

Then someone mentions a cardiac team visiting the hospital. You wait in line with dozens of families. Each holding their child. Each hoping.

The doctor examines your baby. Looks at the echo. Studies the heart, and says three words:

"We can fix this."

Your knees go weak. Your eyes fill with tears. Months of terror melt into relief.

Your child isn't going to die. Your child is going to live.

This is the moment we work for. Every flight. Every surgery. Every hour training local teams and here's the best part: we're training local surgeons to deliver this moment themselves. So no family waits for overseas visitors.

Follow us to see more hearts being healed ❤️‍🩹

01/29/2026

01/29/2026

Zliten update! 🇱🇾 One thing that separates GCA from other charitable surgical organizations is that GCA will take on the most complex cases, and rarely if ever turns anyone away. Not only does GCA take tough cases head on, but we have incredible successes. Meet Sama! She is a sweet 3 (almost 4) year old who has a very complex congenital condition. At 6 months of age, she received a Glenn Procedure in a different country. The Glenn Procedure an open-heart surgery used to treat complex single ventricle congenital heart defects like Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS). This surgery is typically performed between the ages of 4 and 6 months. It connects the Superior Vena Cava (SVC) directly to the pulmonary artery (PA) allowing blood from the upper body to flow passively to the lungs. This reduces the workload of the ventricle and helps improve oxygen levels. However the cardiologist and surgeon missed part of her diagnosis. As Sama continued to grow, her blood oxygen levels dropped significantly. Her decreased oxygen saturation became so debilitating for her that she did not have the energy (oxygen capacity, or reserves) for simple activities of daily life we take for granted, for example, like walking. Sama’s mom carried her everywhere she needed to go for over two years. Upon further consultation and examination, it was determined that Sama’s anatomy had not been fully corrected by the Glenn Procedure. She was further diagnosed with a Left Sided Superior Vena Cava (LSVC) that was part of a hemiazygos continuation of the Inferior Vena Cava (IVC) something which only occurs in

01/29/2026

What I'm about to share could save your child's life…😳

After decades operating on children's hearts, I've seen too many cases caught too late.

Here are the 5 signs I wish every parent knew:

1. 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀
2. 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲
3. 𝗣𝗼𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 (infants)
4. 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗹𝘆
5. 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀

Most heart defects are treatable when caught early. Follow us for more life saving information 🫀

01/27/2026

Maturing as a cardiac surgeon is realizing that a routine day in my life is the most important day in a child's life and their family's future. I've done this surgery hundreds of times. For this family, it's the only time that matters.

The monitors beeping. The controlled chaos. The hours of meticulous work on a heart the size of a walnut. For me, it's Tuesday. For them, it's the day everything changes.

Every stitch. Every decision. Every second, it carries the weight of a child's entire future and a family's hope.

That's the responsibility I never want to get comfortable with.

Because the moment this feels "routine" is the moment I've forgotten what's actually at stake.

This is why I do what I do with the Global Cardiac Alliance. We're not just performing surgeries—we're giving families back their futures, one small heart at a time.

Follow along to see the work that matters most. 🩺💙🙏

01/26/2026

I've been a pediatric cardiac surgeon for decades. And I've heard countless stories from parents who were told these exact phrases, before their child was diagnosed with a heart condition…👀

Here's the truth:

Yes, reflux is common.

Yes, babies do breathe faster than adults.

Yes, some babies are picky eaters.

BUT these can also be signs that a baby's heart isn't working as efficiently as it should be.

When the heart struggles to pump properly:

→ Fluid can back up, causing feeding difficulties that look like reflux

→ The body compensates with faster breathing

→ Feeding becomes exhausting work instead of easy nourishment

I'm not saying every fussy eater has a heart defect. Most don't.

But if these symptoms persist, if your baby isn't thriving, if your gut says something is off—push for more answers.

Ask about a pulse oximetry test. Request an echocardiogram. Get a second opinion. Because sometimes "just reflux" isn't just reflux. And early detection changes everything.

Save this. Share it. It could save a child's life. 💙👶⚠️

01/25/2026

Zliten update! 🇱🇾 The team has been very busy! There have been so many beautiful and sweet kids! So far, 19 kids have undergone surgery and all have done well! You may remember Hayah, the baby girl from Benghazi; she is looking great! She’s adorable and look how much hair she has! 🥰 Meet Noran, this little lady was diagnosed with Pulmonary Artery Sling (PAS), a rare congenital vascular anomaly where the left pulmonary artery (LPA) arises from the right, but compresses the trachea, which can cause severe respiratory distress in infants. Diagnosis is best made by an echocardiogram or a CT scan and can often be supplemented by bronchoscopy to evaluate associated tracheal stenosis. Symptoms often appear within the first year of life, and present through respiratory issues including recurrent pneumonia, stridor, and wheezing. To correct the condition, a surgeon begins with a median sternotomy, (or opens the chest) allowing the surgeon to access and detach the left pulmonary artery (LPA) from its abnormal position. The pulmonary artery is cut and detached from the right pulmonary artery (RPA) and implanted into the main pulmonary artery. This allows the position to be changed, allowing it to pass in front of the trachea relieving the airway of compression and restriction. Salah is a handsome little guy who had a partial AV Canal repair. Here are pictures of some additional patients! More details to come!

01/24/2026

The most deadly heart defects often look harmless.

Here's what parents need to notice early (this can save your child's life):

Your baby passed all their hospital tests. They look perfect. But some critical heart defects don't reveal themselves right away.

Watch for these subtle signs:

→ Breathing faster than normal, especially at rest

→ Getting unusually tired or sweaty during feeds

→ Skin that looks pale, grayish, or bluish around the lips and nails

→ Poor weight gain despite feeding frequently

→ Unusual sleepiness or difficulty waking for feeds

These symptoms can be easy to dismiss. "Babies are just like that," you might hear. But your instincts matter.

I've operated on thousands of children. The ones who had the best outcomes? Their parents noticed something early and refused to let it go.

Congenital heart defects affect 1 in 100 newborns. Most are treatable—when caught in time.

Share this with every new parent you know. 💙👶⚠️

01/23/2026

A baby born with a heart defect in Memphis has a 97% survival rate…

The same baby born in many parts of Africa or Southeast Asia…Often no chance at all.

Not because the condition is different. Because the access to care is. This isn't acceptable.

Every year, 1.4 million children are born with congenital heart defects worldwide. Over 90% of them live in low and middle-income countries where pediatric heart surgery simply doesn't exist.

We're changing that equation.

Through the Global Cardiac Alliance, we travel to these underserved regions 3 to 6 times per year, for 3 to 7 years per site. We don't just perform surgeries, we train the local teams to do it themselves.

When we leave, they don't need us anymore. That's the point.

We've helped establish independent pediatric cardiac programs across the globe. Programs that keep saving lives long after we're gone. Because a child's survival shouldn't depend on their zip code 🌍💙🏥

01/22/2026

If something in your gut feels off…I'm a pediatric cardiac surgeon and I trust parents' instincts ↓

In my decades of practice, I've learned something that isn't in any textbook:

Parents know when something is wrong.

You might not be able to name it. You might not have medical terminology. Doctors might tell you "everything looks fine." That feeling in your stomach? Don't ignore it.

I've seen too many cases where a parent's persistence, their refusal to accept "it's nothing", saved their child's life. You spend more time with your baby than any doctor ever will. You notice the small things. The way they breathe. How they feed. When they seem "off."

Those observations matter. So if you're sitting there wondering whether you should ask another question, push for another test, or get a second opinion… Do it.

Advocate for your child. That's your job. And you're doing it right.

Double tap if you believe in trusting parental instincts. 💙🙏👶

01/21/2026

Delivery! 🚛💨💨 We’d like to extend our deep gratitude and a huge thank you to Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Missouri. They recently updated their fleet of perfusion pumps and kindly donated their retired fleet of (4) Sorin S5 heart/lung machines to us! When hospitals purchase capital equipment at retail price they depreciate their value over a given number of years, commonly 10. At the end of that time, on paper, the hospital deems the equipment of no value. In many circumstances the capital equipment’s end of life date is well beyond the hospital’s depreciation date. Hospital departments partially base their monetary value off assets and having depreciated items can ultimately diminish or hinder their budgets and financial requests for subsequent years. Additionally, having updated equipment is important for patient safety and reliability. Mercy was kind enough to have the machines serviced after their retirement ensuring that they were in perfect working condition prior to their donation. Donations of any kind are always appreciated and very helpful, however capital equipment items such as perfusion pumps are extremely expensive (~$250,000 USD each) initially and something many new programs simply cannot afford in their limited budgets. The S5’s are a well built and designed machine which were considered a preferred pump by many perfusionists for years until their replacement by the newly designed Essence pump. These will bring many years of service to programs who could not otherwise facilitate heart surgery. The impact this donation will have on our work is enormous. Thank you Mercy of Springfield!