Starting in June 2026, Christopher will be joining our team in Cambodia. The medical student will be working at our children’s hospital in Siem Reap for two months. Here, he introduces himself. Christopher Meeks, 25, Winterthur ZH I owe my interest in medicine largely to two strong and inspiring women in my life. My mother and godmother are both doctors and have encouraged my fascination with the complexity of the human body from an early age. For me, our body is and always

The fight against the hidden danger lurking beneath Cambodia’s fields: To this day, Cambodia remains one of the countries most affected by landmines in the world. Decades of armed conflict – particularly during the Khmer Rouge regime and the subsequent civil war – left millions of hidden explosive devices scattered throughout the country. Although the war has long since ended, its consequences still affect the population every day. Especially in rural areas, landmines pose a

Find out why modern diagnostics absolutely require a well-equipped laboratory.

Canteen manager in Siem Reap

Mornh Phanun finally wanted to ride a motorcycle himself. The 12-year-old boy from Banteay Meanchey in northwestern Cambodia got on the seat, rode off, and crashed into a tree. The impact was severe: Phanun was impaled by a branch, which caused a deep wound in the area of his pelvis and buttocks. For his father, Saphanit, 36, this marked the beginning of an anxious time. The boy received prompt care at our hospital in Siem Reap. The team operated on him and was able to close

The 2026 Knie Gala – what a fantastic evening! A heartfelt thank you to our guests, all the volunteers, and the Knie family. This year, we were also delighted to welcome a delegation from the management of our hospital in Cambodia under the big top. A Meaningful Gift for Employees and Customers Every May, the Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospital Foundation hosts its traditional Knie Gala at Sechseläutenplatz in Zurich. Join this initiative and take the opportunity to book a ticke

The scent of jasmine and incense fills the air, water fountains spray through the wide streets and narrow alleys of Siem Reap, and festive music blares from every temple. Siem Reap is celebrating Choul Chnam Thmey, the Khmer New Year. Amid the shimmering heat of a Southeast Asian April, one of the region’s liveliest, warmest, and most traditional festivals takes place here. The Khmer New Year is deeply rooted in the Hindu-Buddhist solar calendar. It falls in mid-April and mar

Starting in May 2026, the two medical students will be joining our team in Cambodia. They will be working for two months at our children’s hospital and maternity ward in Siem Reap. Here, they introduce themselves. Ila Grenkowski, 23, Lucerne My fascination with the human body began in early childhood. My mother studied biology, and because of her interests, we had many books at home about nature and the human body. So, from a young age, I would flip through things like the e

Interview with Prof. Ueli Möhrlen How many times have you come to Cambodia on missions? This is my fourth time. My first visit was in February 2020, and then there was a break during the COVID-19 pandemic. And now I come here once a year for a week at a time. Is the goal of all your missions here to advance minimally invasive surgery? It’s not just about minimally invasive surgical techniques. It’s also about determining indications and planning treatment: How and when do

Introduction Even before I left, I knew that, unlike most of my predecessors, I would be the only Swiss medical student here during the first of my two months. That’s why I was even slightly more nervous than one usually is before a big trip. I worried and wondered how well I would connect with the locals and whether I would find people to do things with outside the hospital. Or whether I would still have the energy in my free time to make new friends. But I was welcomed so w

Starting in April 2026, Frederik will be joining our team in Cambodia. The medical student will be working at our children’s hospital in Siem Reap for two months. Here, he introduces himself. Frederik Banerjee, 24, Basel I decided to study medicine because I’ve been fascinated by the natural sciences from an early age. Medicine offers the opportunity to engage in scientific work while also interacting directly with patients and supporting them through various life situations.

Medical student Jan Han worked at our hospital in Siem Reap as part of his elective year – and is also a passionate photographer. He has now organized a three-week exhibition entitled “When Life hurts, Siem Reap heals” at the Photobastei in Zurich, featuring the pictures he took during his time there. Jan is exhibiting his photographs of the hospital environment and of the country and its people. The pictures are available for purchase, and he plans to donate the net proceeds

“We have to hit each other in Switzerland.” I come to this conclusion with a smile as I walk out of the ward after a day at the MPICU (Mother-Pediatric-ICU). At this point, I had spent about a month in Cambodia at Kantha Bopha Hospital, working in the maternity ward, the surgery ward (pediatrics), and the MPICU. Before that, I was able to enjoy a few days of vacation and celebrated New Year's Eve here in Siem Reap. That evening, we had our first real contact with the locals a

Diogo will be joining our team in Cambodia in March 2026. The medical student will be working at our children's hospital in Siem Reap for two months. Here he introduces himself. Diogo Pinheiro Zimmermann, 26, Dietikon ZH In secondary school, I decided that I wanted to study medicine. I was inspired above all by role models: four doctors in particular influenced my decision—because when I watched them, I knew that I wanted to work as a doctor one day. They were: Dr. Konrad Gri

During the eight weeks we spent in Siem Reap as medical students, we laughed, cried, learned, and above all understood what a tremendous legacy Beat Richner and Peter Studer have left behind here. No matter where we went or who we spoke to, the hospitals named after the late Princess Kantha Bopha are firmly anchored in the consciousness of the population. I was deeply impressed by the openness with which we were welcomed and the profound gratitude shown to us on behalf of the

The video takes you on a tour of one of our hospitals. The history of the Kantha Bopha hospitals is an impressive chapter in humanitarian aid. In 1992, Swiss pediatricians Beat Richner (1947-2018) and his colleague Peter Studer (1947-2020) rebuilt the hospital in Phnom Penh at the request of the king, which had been reduced to rubble after the war. In 1999, the Jayavarman VII Hospital opened its doors in the north of the country. Today, we care for around 3,000 children every

They care for sick or injured children and their families, ensure the medical quality of the hospitals, serve as contact persons for the staff, and manage the enormous daily influx. Professor Dr. med. Ky Santy is the hospital director in Phnom Penh, Professor Dr. med. Yay Chantana his counterpart in Siem Reap. We speak with both about the everyday challenges, support from Switzerland, and remember the two founders, Beat Richner and Peter Studer. The heads of our hospitals:

We look back on the past year with gratitude and pride. Our five children's hospitals were very busy – as the figures confirm: 1,071,637 girls, boys, and babies sought medical assistance from us in 2025. Significantly more children than in the previous year were so seriously ill or injured that we had to admit them as inpatients – 233,243 (up 25.6 percent). We recorded 22,982 cases of dengue fever, 34,889 surgical procedures, and 1,163 open-heart or cardiac catheterization o

It should have been a normal day. Yeng Sary was out in the family's rice fields with her daughter Dy Chhengly to start harvesting. But then the six-year-old climbed a tree, slipped, and fell to the ground. Her mother knew immediately that something was wrong with her daughter's arm. It swelled up more and more, and Chhengly complained of pain. So the two immediately made their way to our children's hospital in Siem Reap. There, the team diagnosed a fracture of the forearm. Th

This year started differently than usual for me. Instead of sitting in cold Switzerland, I am now here in Siem Reap, a small, often underestimated town. From the very first moment, I felt how lively this city is and how open and warm the people here are. A friend of mine had recommended that I spend part of my elective study year at Kantha Bopha in Siem Reap—he himself was very enthusiastic about his stay there. So I came here with high expectations. Nevertheless, the hospita