On Prof Magdi Yacoub's Heart Foundation

This post was written by the son of a schoolmate who underwent open heart surgery. He tells the story of Dr. Magdi Yacoub's Hospital in Aswan. I thought it was worth sharing. I urge you to donate to this wonderful cause.

Amidst this fog of crazy news and events, there's a magical little place in Aswan, Egypt. It is founded by a saint and
run by angels. It's not a fancy place and is in a very non-fancy neighborhood, but it is a place were miracles happen every day and families get to stay united with their loved ones and find healing and better health. People come here to this place from all over the country, young, old, new born, rich, poor, different religious backgrounds...all suffering from some form of heart illness. They are all received with a warm welcome, treated with dignity, respect and receive leading edge treatment, at no charge, from Egypt's best young generation of cardiology doctors and nurses in a very professionally run and clean facility, managed entirely by Egyptians.
I spent the last 3 weeks in Aswan (and continue to do so) with my mom and family at The Magdy Yacoub Heart Foundation and can truly say, it is nothing short of astounding! Professor Sir Madgy Yacoub (or "prof" as he is affectionately known to his staff) is a well known legend in his own might, so I won't say more about that. I can attest to his humbleness as he stands quietly in line in the only (non fancy but clean and adequate) hospital cafeteria behind doctors, nurses and staff and sits among them sharing an occasional smile or hello. He answers questions of patient's family briefly and to the point and his humble deep smile just gives you that warm feeling of comfort, that no effort was spared and that everything will be alright, God willing.
Over a period of about 3 weeks, he was present in Aswan maybe not more than 2 days, but you can not really tell the difference in how the place is run whether he is there or not. Contrary to popular belief, this is not a one man show by any stretch. His legacy, in my view, is in the future generation(s) of leaders and professionals he has developed. Most of the doctors and surgeons are (deliberately) under 40 years old and absolutely brilliant in their fields to say the least. The nurses (also very young) are professionally trained and I can honestly say that they are on par, if not better, than their counterparts in top hospitals in the UK or the US. The place is very well managed by again, young professional staff. You get a comforting sense of the team spirit and respect among everyone.
I have even seen a few British surgeons over the last few weeks, who have come here to receive training at the hands of young Egyptian surgeons (other than the Prof).
I am elated to see a true example of professionalism and success entirely managed and operated by young professional Egyptians. It is inspiring to see that we can achieve great things and I hope more models like this start evolving in our country. There are many more positive details about this place, staff, systems and training that I'm sure I'm missing from my account.
I would urge everyone I know to donate to this charitable foundation. I can personally attest as to how funds are being used, judging by the level of treatment people receive, the training for staff, the professionals they employ and the condition of the facility. Above all, the miracles that happen here every day as a result of this great work.
Myself and my family are truly thankful for this wonderful place and all the doctors (especially Dr Guindy, Dr Hosam Waly, Dr Afifi, Dr Hatem Hosny, Dr Maghawry, Dr Dowayek), nurses, staff members, donors, and of course, Professor Sir Magdy himself, who enabled us to spend this Mother's Day with our amazing mom, Soha El Wakil, who is still in recovery after a major heart surgery.
We are also very thankful for all the warm messages, prayers and thoughts we received from family, friends and loved ones, we love you all!