Nigeria’s leading engineering construction company, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, within the company’s corporate social responsibility policy, has in a compassionate intervention for the second time, partnered with the Federal Medical Centre Abuja for a Cardiac Surgery Mission to provide care to patients who could not otherwise afford the sensitive medical procedure.

In an earlier intervention and assistance by Julius Berger in June of this year, the company funded the same cardiac surgical procedure for five patients; children whose ages ranged from 10 months, 18 months, 2 years to 12 years.

Financial expenditure per patient in the Julius Berger sponsored operations last June included hospital admission and investigations, operation consumables and anaesthesia drugs, intensive care unit fee, and post-operation drugs.

For the second tranche of the Julius Berger sponsored cardiac surgical interventions to save children’s lives at the Federal Medical Centre Abuja, a list of seven children aged between 12 months, 15 months, 17 months, 18 months, 2 years, 4years, and 6 years with a diagnosis of perimembranous VSD has been made.

The Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Abuja said the high cost for the surgical procedure per patient derives from the recent increase in the cost of cardiac surgery consumables. Thus, there was the need for collaboration with Julius Berger to help the children with financial assistance to save and preserve their lives.

According to a statement by the Management of the Federal Medical Centre Abuja, “…we will like to use this opportunity to appreciate this partnership gesture (from Julius Berger Nigeria Plc), while we look forward to more partnerships and collaboration as we still have a large number of pediatric cases with heart conditions who cannot afford it.”

The Chief Risk Officer of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Mrs Mustapha Shakira said the company “places great premium on life and would remain proactive in its CSR initiatives, particularly to sustainably protect and preserve lives in our operational communities. Children, we also recognize, are the future of our society. Therefore, within our sustainability policy at Julius Berger, we are privileged and feel honoured to partner with the FMC to save the lives of the children.”