Ms. Ulrika Dandekar

1993 – 2014

Please join us in celebrating the life of Ulrika (Riya) Dandekar, who participated in Outreach and database collation on the inaugural 2009 mission to Kumasi, Ghana building a permanent heart surgery programme.  She joined the historic mission from the UK with her father, Dr. Uday Dandekar, who was Medical Director of CardioStart’s UK chapter.

At the Komfe Anokye Teaching Hospital, in Kumasi, a national centre, she was very actively involved in the clinical management during the two-week mission and counseled the
patients undergoing congenital and acquired heart surgery. She also assisted to collect the data about their life challenges in relation to their cardiac presentation.  That experience gave her encouragement to pursue a career in medicine, but this was cut short by cancer.  Her wonderful humour, joy, warmth and compassion to the team and all the patients she met live on in our memories as a great example of these vital qualities.  Ulrika embraced life to its fullest and was an inspiration to us all.