Our Impact

  • Since 2009, IPSAC has organized clinical service trips to children hospitals across Vietnam, fostering long-term collaboration with local medical teams. Our mission is to work side by side with Vietnamese partners on complex pediatric surgery cases—sharing knowledge, advancing surgical skills, and improving care for children in need.

  • 33 trips and counting!

  • Our flagship training program in pediatric emergency surgical care has achieved broad regional reach and measurable impact.

    • 20 course sessions delivered since 2017

    • 477 healthcare providers trained across Vietnam, Pakistan, Indonesia, Bahrain, Tanzania, and Jordan

    • Taught by a multidisciplinary international faculty

    • Focused on building pediatric emergency surgical capacity in low- and middle-income countries

    • Many former graduates have been subsequently trained to become PASS faculty themselves, reflecting our commitment to building local leadership and ensuring the long-term sustainability of pediatric surgical education.

  • Supported Publications

    Our collaborative research has resulted in numerous peer-reviewed publications in leading international journals, advancing understanding of pediatric liver disease, translational therapies, and global surgery capacity building.

    1. Biliary Atresia Disease Burden in Vietnam. Surgery (2016). PMID: 27743713

    2. Recombinant Human G-CSF Alleviates Liver Fibrosis in Bile Duct-Ligated Mice. Biomed. Res. Ther. (2019).

    3. Optimization of Hepatic Stellate Cell Isolation and Culture. Bioscience Reports (2021). doi:10.1042/BSR20202514

    4. Biliary Atresia Liver Histopathologies as Prognostic Factors for Post-Kasai Outcome. J Pediatr Surg (2021). PMID: 33838902

    5. Phase 1 Study of G-CSF Mobilization in Biliary Atresia Patients. J Pediatr Surg (2021). PMID: 33965236

    6. Autophagy Inhibition and Liver Injury in Mouse Models. J Gastroenterol Hepatol (2021). doi:10.1111/jgh.15726

    7. Phase 2 Multicenter RCT Protocol for G-CSF in Biliary Atresia. Pediatr Surg Int (2022). doi:10.1007/s00383-022-05115-0

    8. PASS: A Course in Pediatric Acute Surgical Support. J Pediatr Surg (2022). doi:10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2022.03.004

    9. Effects of Autophagy Inhibition on Hepatic Stellate Cells. J Gastroenterol Hepatol (2022). PMID: 34713488

    10. Academic Pediatric Surgery Capacity Building in Vietnam through PASS. Frontiers in Surgery (2022). doi:10.3389/fsurg.2022.868483

    11. G-CSF Reduces Biliary Fibrosis and Ductular Reaction. Liver Res (2023). PMID: 39959697

    12. Chloroquine Downmodulates Hepatic Stellate Cell Activation in BDL Mice. Cells (2023). PMID: 37048098

    13. Autophagy Modulates Adaptive Liver Response. Liver Res (2023). PMID: 39958781

  • Grants & Research Funding

    1. Vietnam Education Foundation (2016) — Supported the development and deployment of the Pediatric Acute Surgical Support (PASS) course at Pham Ngoc Thach Medical University.

    2. Cures Within Reach (2018) — Collaborative project between the National Pediatric Hospital (Hanoi) and Children’s National Hospital (Washington, D.C.) investigating G-CSF Adjuvant Therapy for Congenital Biliary Atresia.

    3. Cures Within Reach – ReGRoW Grant (2021–Present) — Ongoing study on Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) Adjunct Therapy for Congenital Neonatal Biliary Atresia.

      • Principal Investigator: Dr. Anh Hoa Pham Nguyen, Department of Hepatology, National Pediatric Hospital, Hanoi.

Since our founding in 2009, we have made remarkable progress through the dedication of our volunteers, board members, research collaborators, and institutional partners across more than a dozen countries. Together, we have built a global network united by a shared mission — to advance pediatric surgical care, education, and research in resource-limited settings.

From pioneering the PASS course and mentoring the next generation of clinician-scientists, to securing research grants and publishing in leading journals, each achievement reflects our collective commitment to sustainable, evidence-based global health.

The milestones here represent not only what we have accomplished — but the enduring partnerships that make our work possible.