Tibetan children receive free heart surgeries

Five Tibetan children received free heart surgeries at the Shanghai Children's Medical Center Wednesday, the Xinmin Evening News reported.

The five were among the first group of 15 children that will receive treatment thanks to a program that provides free medical care to Tibetan children with congenital heart disease.

"The Shanghai Branch of the Red Cross Society of China and the Shanghai Charity Foundation are the primary sponsors of the program. The Shanghai Children's Medical Center provided free accommodation to the children and their parents," said Xia Lin, press officer for the Shanghai Children's Medical Center.

The cost of a heart surgery at the center ranges from 20,000 yuan ($3,162) to 40,000 yuan, Xia said.

Xia said that the children had some trouble adjusting to the lower altitude of the city.

The children suffered from nausea after arriving in Shanghai and spent two days resting to adjust to the local environment, the Xinmin Evening News reported.

Hospital social workers also provided the children and their parents with psychological counseling.

The program is part of the hospital's charitable activities aimed at rural children.

"The Shanghai Children's Medical Center often gives free treatment to children from remote areas. We have treated three children from Yunnan Province and sent medical personnel to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to treat two other children," Xia said.