HART's mission is to collaborate with indigenous leaders and other humanitarian aid organizations worldwide to save lives and alleviate suffering through the eradication of Buruli Ulcer. This is accomplished through the diligent work of various volunteers completing projects of treatment, research, education, and outreach concerning BU.

HART (Humanitarian Aid Relief Team) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to improving the quality of healthcare worldwide. HART was founded in 1992, by university students interested in providing medical supplies in Russia. Since then, HART has donated more than $2 Million in needed medical supplies and equipment for projects in Russia and Africa.

In 1995, HART began working towards treating and eradicating the tropical skin disease Buruli Ulcer and has initiated several projects in Ghana, where HART surgeons, nurses, and volunteers donate their time to treat victims of this terrible disease by performing skin grafts on the most severe cases. HART physicians train local medical personnel in performing proper surgical techniques for treatment of Buruli Ulcer. HART volunteers help in the hospital and participate in the outreach program, traveling to small, outlying communities to teach villagers about Buruli Ulcer and how to recognize the disease at its early stages and receive proper treatment.

More recently, HART has partnered with the World Health Organization (WHO) Buruli Ulcer Initiative to eradicate Buruli Ulcer. In 1998, HART co-sponsored with the WHO the First Annual Conference on Buruli Ulcer. Presently, HART is working with other international non-governmental organizations, such as LDS Charities, to build and equip a district hospital in Amasaman, the most endemic area in Ghana. HART has recently partnered with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in conducting research on the serodiagnosis of Buruli Ulcer and the efficacy of surgical intervention.

HART volunteers consist of students, medical personnel, and other interested community members. Volunteers meet once weekly to plan medical projects, organize fundraisers, collect supplies, and develop research projects. The HART Board of Directors meets quarterly to approve volunteer projects and to direct the affairs of the organization. All volunteers donate their own time and pay their own expenses, including airfare, to help alleviate the suffering of Buruli Ulcer victims.