RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES VISITS LATVIA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RIGA 000657 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SOCI OPRC LG SUBJECT: RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES VISITS LATVIA RIGA 00000657 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. SUMMARY. At the invitation of Ambassador Bailey, a three-person team from Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) visited Latvia July 24-28. The team visited a number of hospitals and orphanages to assess the quality of care and look for possible areas of cooperation. They also met with representatives from the local business and philanthropic communities to learn about charitable giving in Latvia and gauge the depth of possible support for a local RMHC chapter. The Embassy received very positive feedback from participants, and the establishment of a chapter is quite possible although no specific decisions have been made at this point. According to RMHC reps, this was the first time an Embassy organized their visit and it provided them with useful access they might not otherwise have had. The visit also provided a useful context to discuss and promote the further development of Latvian charitable endeavors. END SUMMARY ¶2. RMHC, the charitable arm of the McDonald's corporation, is a global children's charity represented in forty-nine countries. RMHC's goal is to improve the health and well-being of children through several core programs. These include: the signature Ronald McDonald House, which provides a "home away from home" for families of seriously ill children receiving treatment at a nearby hospital; and a Mobile Care Unit that brings health care services to children in underserved areas. ¶3. On July 24-28, 2006, RMHC Senior Director Janet Burton, RMHC Trustee John Falletta, and Special Projects Manager Laurel Schumm visited Latvia at the invitation of Ambassador Bailey to assess the situation of children's health care and social welfare. The team visited Riga Children's Hospital and the Dardedze center for children who suffered from violence. They also met with pediatric doctors, philanthropists, business leaders and government officials, as well as toured orphanages in the eastern part of Latvia. President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Latvia, Jerry Wirth, accompanied the group to many of these events. ¶4. Latvia has only one specialized children's hospital. The Riga Children's hospital is located in Riga, but treats patients from all over the country. It is a sprawling complex of buildings in various stages of renovation. While the hospital has fairly modern equipment, it lacks resources for less essential needs. ¶5. During informal meetings over dinner and at a philanthropic roundtable discussion with well-known Latvian philanthropists, the team learned that charitable giving in Latvia is still in its infancy, but has made some progress in the past few years. Local businesses are looking to improve their image through charity and are beginning to understand corporate social responsibility and its role in a democratic society. Significantly, three out of four roundtable participants were foreign-born Latvians who have returned to Latvia and now serve as role models in social responsibility. Latvian philanthropists agreed that establishing trust is among the key challenges to Latvian charity work, as Latvians still remember scandals in early 1990s, when a considerable amount of foreign technical assistance was used for personal gain. ¶6. In order to understand the business environment and to gauge private sector interest in supporting a RMHC Chapter in Latvia, the RMHC team met with Latvian Economics Minister Aigars Stokenbergs and a group of local and American company representatives, including Johnson and Johnson, Eli Lilly, and Coca-Cola. The participants expressed strong interest in an RMHC chapter. The team was particularly pleased to receive a pledge of approximately 25,000 USD from one of the companies. ¶7. An overnight trip to Latgale, Latvia's Eastern region bordering Russia, was an insightful experience both for the team and the Embassy representatives. Latgale is the most depressed region of Latvia, with unemployment rates as high as 25 percent compared to 6.3 percent national average. Despite this underdevelopment, the orphanages that the team visited were in reasonably good condition. The team also visited a regional hospital that was recently rebuilt and appeared adequate, though doctors there confirmed that they refer more difficult pediatric cases to Riga Children's Hospital. ¶8. A particularly inspiring success story on this trip was Grasi Children's Village, a privately run orphanage that accepts children with developmental disorders. Its charismatic French founder is using non-traditional methods both in caring for the children and raising money for the orphanage. One if the orphanage's most recent projects is a "children's farm" where children will interact with animals and receive a form of developmental therapy through such contacts. ¶9. Towards the end of the RMHC visit, the team met with Latvian Minister of Health Gundars Berzins and Parliamentary Speaker Ingrida Udre. These representatives reassured the team that the GOL is committed to improving children's welfare. Moreover, the Minister of Health gave a personal promise to intervene if RMHC projects in Latvia need legislative support. ¶10. The RMHC visit showed that there is strong local support for a RIGA 00000657 002.2 OF 002 RMHC Chapter in Latvia. The visit also confirmed a need for family accommodations that would allow parents from outside Riga to stay with their children undergoing treatment at Riga Children's Hospital. At the same time, the RMHC team cautioned that, within the Latvian context, it would be better to slowly build up a chapter--starting with smaller projects and then moving to more ambitious goals such as creating a Ronald McDonald House. The discussions with pediatric doctors and social workers confirmed the need for a Mobile Care Unit that could provide not only basic health care to children in underserved regions, but also educate parents about medical treatment options for their children. According to the team, if a chapter is established in Latvia, it is likely that it will start with such a Mobile Care Unit. ¶11. Comment: The potential establishment of an RMHC chapter in Latvia would be a significant contribution to improving children's health in the country and would be emblematic of the private-public partnerships the Embassy has been advocating in the health care field. RMHC team members said this was the first time that an Embassy had organized a visit for them and it provided them with access to individuals and new sources of information that might not otherwise have been available. BAILEY