Volunteer Spotlight: ‘Project HOPE Gave Me a Different Angle to See the World’
Nursing has been part of Lily Hsu’s life since she was a little girl. Through Project HOPE, it became a way to treat people around the world.
Even as a little girl, Lily Hsu knew nursing would be part of her life.
“My mother was a nurse, so when I was a little, I went to the hospital with her frequently,” she says. “So I was familiar with the hospital setting and saw people who were suffering. When I became a nurse, I was really happy because I could use my skills to help people in different countries.”
Nursing took Hsu around the world: to places like Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand and Bangladesh. It was a way to make a living, but also a way to give back. So in 1999, when Project HOPE approached her with a big idea, Hsu saw a perfect opportunity to combine her passion for medicine with her desire to help people.
“I think the biggest reward for me is to see the changes that have happened to our patients, to their families, and to myself,” she says. “This work has given me a lot of positive energy that really enriches me.”
“They were looking for nursing faculty positions to support a new pediatric hospital,” Hsu says. “And because of my teaching experience and also my clinical experience in pediatric and maternal care, I was very honored to take a nursing educator’s role for Shanghai Children’s Medical Center.”
Hsu, who was living in Utah, was nervous about going to China — “it was a new country to me,” she says — but the opportunity was too good to pass up. There was no children’s hospital in the area at the time, and as the lead trainer for the nursing staff, her job was to train 500 nurses with modern techniques to care for children receiving cancer treatment.
Today, Shanghai Children’s Medical Center is the leading pediatric center in China for cancer and congenital anomalies, performing lifesaving heart surgery on nearly 3,500 children each year. The hospital has grown from 250 beds to 1,000 beds as children come from across China to seek treatment.
In the last 20 years, HOPE has donated more than $37 million in medical equipment and launched a dozen training programs for doctors, nurses and health workers — many of them led by Hsu.
“I think the biggest reward for me is to see the changes that have happened to our patients, to their families, and to myself,” she says. “This work has given me a lot of positive energy that really enriches me.”
Nineteen years after she started, Hsu says that volunteering has showed her how the power of HOPE can change lives — for the children who need it, but also their families, caregivers and community.
“Project HOPE gave me a different angle to see the world,” she says. “You see people’s tender heart. You see people try to help each other. You see the mission. And I think the biggest reward for me is to see the changes that have happened for our patients and their families. It gives me a lot of positive energy that really enriches me.
“Rather than to say that I’m helping people, I think people are helping me to be a better person.”
How you can help
Make a lifesaving gift to support our work now and for the future at projecthope.org/donate.
Are you a health-care or other professional who would like to learn more about volunteering abroad with Project HOPE? Learn more about our volunteer program and join our volunteer roster.
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