The first solid organ transplant performed at Pequeno Príncipe Hospital is celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2024. On October 11, 1989, Roni Peterson Figueiredo, then 8 years old, received a kidney donated by her mother. Today, Roni is 43 years old and is a first aid driver for SAMU (Emergency Service – similar to the 911) in Cordeirópolis, in the interior of São Paulo state. He is married to Alexandra Figueiredo and has a teenage son, Gustavo. “Because I was hospitalized for a long time, I always wanted to help other people. I passed the first aid driver exam and did a lot of training. Today I actively participate in rescues and that fulfills me,” he says.

In these 35 years, Pequeno Príncipe has expanded and improved its operations in pediatric transplants, becoming an important transplant center in Brazil. In liver, heart, and bone marrow transplants, for example, the Hospital accounts for around 10% of pediatric procedures performed in the country, according to data for 2022 made available by the Brazilian Association of Organ Transplantation (national data for 2023 has not yet been disclosed). In 2023 alone, 307 transplants were performed at Pequeno Príncipe, the highest number ever recorded in a single year in the institution’s history. Learn more details in the main article of 2024 February edition of the Pequeno Príncipe News.

And in this newsletter first edition of the year, you will also check the articles below. Click on the links to read the full length texts.

• Reconstruction of the Oncology, Hematology, and BMT Outpatient Clinic will begin in March. The space was destroyed by a fire that occurred in October 2023. Hospital teams have been working since November to survey the damage, in the preparation of projects, in the production of technical materials that make up the work’s executive notebook and in quotations for the provision of the service, to define the companies that will be responsible for the work. Read more here.
• Law sanctioned in January provides for annual readjustment of services provided by the Brazilian Public Health System (known as SUS). Under the new legislation, the Ministry of Health must define the percentage of correction that will come into force over the following 12 months. The change in the law is a historic achievement, especially for philanthropic hospitals, which provide the majority of care via SUS in Brazil and face many financial difficulties due to healthcare underfunding. Access here to learn more.

• Agenda in favor of children’s rights has opportunities to be strengthened in 2024. Such as the beginning, in January, of the mandates of the new representatives of the guardianship councils, as well as the municipal elections, which will take place in October to choose new mayors and councilors. In 2024, the amendment to article 260 of the Brazilian Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA, abbreviation in Portuguese) takes effect. With this, individuals and legal entities who want to donate part of their Due Income Tax to children’s causes can direct donations directly to the specific projects of civil society organizations. Check more details here.