About Us

The Hoi An Foundation is a US based 501c3 started in 2003 by Josh Solomon, a physician from Denver, Colorado. The initial focus of the foundation was the children of the Hoi An Orphanage in Vietnam. Working closely with the Kianh Foundation, the Hoi An Foundation improved the health and general well being of the children and helped secure a productive future for them in the Vietnamese community.

In 2006 Josh moved to Viet Nam to continue his mission. Through interaction with other charitable organizations, he saw that the need for improved health care encompassed children and adults throughout the Quang Nam province. In 2007, the focus of the foundation changed from the orphanage to improving the health and well-being in the disabled and disadvantaged population in central Viet Nam. This involves multiple projects caring for disabled adults, disabled children, HIV infected children and adults with chronic diseases, as well as continued education of local health care workers.

The Foundation has made much progress in receiving help from great volunteers in the medical field. We are now staffed with a full time nurse in Hoi An and visiting doctors from around the world. This has given Josh the opportunity to manage the foundation from the US, while patients in Viet Nam receive an international standard of care.

Projects

The main objective of the Hoi An Foundation is to improve health care in central Viet Nam. We are the first health-oriented charity in the central province of Quang Nam, an area with a population of 1.4 million. Our goal is to achieve this objective through direct health care to the neediest subset of the population and by improving the existing health care system through training and capacity-building. The main projects include the following:

 

Health Care Improvement. In the poor populations of Viet Nam, untreated chronic disease is the number one cause of death. We are working closely with the local governments and clinics in the surrounding provinces to help this population by providing educational training for the local area doctors and nurses as well as provide free care to the most severly affected individuals. Our training includes treatment of chronic diseases, focusing on hypertension, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease. Hypertension is known as the silent killer and is rampant in Viet Nam.  Many people do not know they have it until after they have life changing strokes and heart attacks. Also, the rates of diabetes and respiratory diseases is high partially due to the lack of knowledge of the disease and its treatment. To help improve the treatment of these conditions, we train physicians in management of these conditions as well as conduct symposiums inviting international doctors to discuss the diseases and current treatments. The most disadvantaged group in Viet Nam are those with disabilities. Our health care improvement project includes providing direct care and medication to those with disabilities. We have established clinics treating patients to improve their health and quality of life. In addition to health care, we provide this group with dental care, eye care and wheelchairs

Pediatric And Adult Heart Disease. We work with adults and children with congenital and acquired heart disease. This involves examining them with a cardiac ultrasound and liaising with western pediatric cardiologists and in-country surgeons to get the necessary corrective procedure. The surgeries are all paid for by private donors. In addition, we also work closely with CHIA, an Australian-based charity with a pediatric heart program.

Pediatric HIV. Pediatric HIV treatment is available in the north and south of Viet Nam, but is untreated in the poor areas of central Viet Nam. We are working with the government in the province capital to provide care and medication to these children and are trying to increase awareness for the families and the children.

In addition to this, our foundation participates in other projects related to health care, including:

Critical Care. We work with ICU doctors from Bach Mai in Ha Noi and Danang General Hospital to help improve the care of critically ill patients. At Bach Mai, we work close with Dr. Carl Bartecchi and the Bach Mai Project, providing equipment as well as training to the poison control center, emergency room and ICU. In the Danang General Hospital, we are training the physicians on infection control in the ICU and introducing protocols on ventilator management. We also conduct teaching rounds with the doctors in training.

Street Childrens Center. We provide health screenings and ongoing care to the children at the Street Childrens Center in Hoi An.

All of the projects of the Hoi An Foundation are made possible only through the hard work of many volunteers and collaboration with both local and international charities. Please visit our Accomplishments link to see our progress.

 

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