UK-based charity Newborns Vietnam has raised $100,000 for a nurse education program aiming to reduce the death rates of Vietnamese newborns via a 500-km cycle ride through the central region. The “Cycling for Newborns” journey started in Quang Nam Province on March 20 and went through Dong Ha Town in Quang Tri Province and the Hai Van Pass before finishing at the Danang Hospital for Women & Children on March 22. As a long-term supporter of the charity, Neil MacGregor, managing director of Savills Vietnam, joined the cycling for the first time this year. “Despite some moments of pain, I had a wonderful time during the three days of cycling. Cycling for newborns was a great cause and I was so happy that Savills have continued to contribute to decreasing the deaths of newborns in Vietnam,” he said. Three colleagues from Savills Singapore joined Neil on the ride and together they raised more than $15,000. The hospital’s nurses were then trained by experts from Canterbury Christ Church University in Britain to develop some specialist skills to improve their care of newborn infants and their mothers. Le Thi Thanh Xuan, vice director of Danang Hospital for Women & Children said, “This training will support our neonatal intensive care unit to become a center of regional excellence, and will help raise standards of neonatal care in central Vietnam”. (Thanhniennews.com March 26)
