IKF's Wonderfund - Life-Saving Medical Care for Children-In-Need

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Jackson Memorial Foundation

The Jackson Memorial Foundation helps the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center provide excellent medical care to the South Florida community, while advancing medical knowledge through vital research programs. The Foundation leads fundraising activities and resources on behalf of Miami-Dade County’s Public Health Trust, which operates Jackson Memorial Hospital as the hub of the internationally renowned medical center.

The mission of Jackson Memorial Foundation (JMF) is to conduct traditional philanthropic activities and to independently create and implement other strategic entrepreneurial initiatives that financially assist Jackson Memorial Hospital (JMH) in advancing its status as a world-class medical center.

International Kids Fund

International Kids Fund (IKF) is a philanthropic program of Jackson Memorial Foundation committed to helping critically ill children primarily from Latin America and the Caribbean gain immediate access to essential medical treatments that are unavailable in their respective home countries.

Thanks to the program, hundreds of foreign children with urgent health care needs have received expert attention from medical specialists at Holtz Children’s Hospital, located at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center in Miami, Florida, United States.

IKF successfully raises funds and administers proactive assistance by having an efficient organizational and financial infrastructure in place to quickly respond to specific requests for help. Simply stated, IKF is in the business of saving young people’s lives.

November 20, 2009

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Q: What is IKF Wonderfund?

A: Created in 2001 by Jackson Memorial Foundation, IKF Wonderfund is a philanthropic program committed to helping critically ill children primarily from Latin America and the Caribbean gain immediate access to essential medical treatments that are unavailable in their respective home countries. IKF Wonderfund also helps children from the United States and all other countries.

Q: Where are IKF Wonderfund children treated?

A: children are primarily treated at Holtz Children's Hospital at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center is one of the largest and most respected children's hospitals in the nation - a hospital that treats more children than any other hospital in Florida. Through a partnership with University of Miami and nearly $20 million in annual research and training funding, Holtz is one of the top pediatric clinical research centers in the United States and the largest in Florida. As a part of a public hospital dedicated to serving every person in need, it is also South Florida's number one source of medical care for children without financial resources. In addition, children are treated at other institutions when appropriate.

Q: What is the function of Jackson Memorial Foundation?

A: Jackson Memorial Foundation is the principal fundraising arm for University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, one of the most active and respected not-for-profit teaching hospitals in the nation. The foundation is dedicated to meeting the critical needs of the hospital and its medical staff through support of priority projects that allow for the care of all patients regardless of their ability to pay. top

Q: What motivated the creation of IKF Wonderfund?

A: IKF Wonderfund was founded in response to an increasing number of desperate international families who regularly came to Jackson Memorial Foundation seeking financial support for their sick children's medical treatment at Holtz Children's Hospital, which is prohibited by law to use publicly funded resources to care for non-residents.
As the number of families increased, the foundation came to realize that a special organizational and financial infrastructure was needed to appropriately support these families.

Q: How many children have been helped by Wonderfund?

A: In an average year, IKF Wonderfund helps approximately 300 international families with children in need of urgent healthcare through expert attention from medical specialists at Holtz Children's Hospital. These children are from all over the world, but come primarily from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Q: Who is eligible for Wonderfund's services?

A: While the lives and suffering of all children are undoubtedly tantamount, regretfully not every child will be found eligible for treatment and/or sponsorship by IKF Wonderfund given the realities of our assessment process.
Eligibility for international sponsorship is determined by the following criteria:

The child must be fighting a medical condition that cannot be treated in his or her home country.
His or her family lacks health insurance and the financial resources to pay for the required health care treatment.
He or she is not a U.S. citizen or resident, as U.S. citizens or residents qualify for government aid.
Doctors believe he or she has a good chance of being cured.
His or her medical condition will not require life-long medical care.
Transplant cases are only eligible if a sponsor has already committed to providing financial support.

To inquire further, please call Wonderfund at +1 877-IKF KIDS (+541 305-585-5888 if calling from outside the United States). You can also write to info@wonderfund.org or:
Jackson's Wonderfund Jackson Memorial Foundation 901 NW 17th Street, Suite Q Miami , FL 33136 U.S.A.

Q: How is IKF Wonderfund governed?

A: The IKF Wonderfund Executive Board is governed by a Board of Directors. Our Board is comprised of some of South Florida's most prominent community leaders. The Board is lead by the Executive Committee which includes, Mariana Martinez, Chairman, Esteban Prellezo, Vice-Chairman, Charles Downs, Treasurer, Dr. Roberto Lopez-Alberola, Secretary, Jorge Ortega, Past Chairman, and Rolando D. Rodriguez, President and Chief Executive Officer, Jackson Memorial Foundation.

Q: What does the Executive Board do?

A: These philanthropic individuals serve as program advocates and are dedicated to raising both funding and awareness for IKF Wonderfund and its mission. They also provide policy direction and oversight.

Q: How is IKF Wonderfund supported financially?

A: Because Holtz Children's Hospital receives public funding, it is not permitted by law to administer treatment to non-residents using taxpayers' dollars. That is why the support and generosity of philanthropic individuals, corporations and organizations across United States and throughout the hemisphere is so critical to saving t