Project New Hope: volunteers caring for children in need

Project New Hope is an ongoing, collaborative, community program that provides no-cost surgical procedures to uninsured children in the Reno, Nevada, region. Children with physical abnormalities who cannot otherwise afford surgery are referred to the program by clinics, schools, and social workers. Volunteers from the health care sector and the community participate in the program and have treated almost 150 children since the program started in 1997. Structured, free-surgery programs can be set up in other health care facilities using guidelines outlined in this article.