2016 Cumana, Venezuela
Pre Clinic Day
Cumana, Venezuela
The children and their families were ready and waiting when we arrived. Every child receives a careful exam before they are cleared for surgery. Dr. Jesperson is examining this young boy. Some patients are... Read More »
Where Smiles Are Made
Cumana, Venezuela
How do you go from cleft to smile? First stop is the Operating room. Add a highly skilled medical team. Now you have the team that can make the magic happen. When he awakens, it will be to a new Read More »
Day 3 – Yaismar
Cumana, Venezuela
Yaismar’s mother brought her daughter to Cumana when she first heard there was a Rotaplast mission in Cumana. Yaismar was born with a very large gap in the roof of her mouth. A cleft palate is a gap in t... Read More »
Day 4 – “What a Difference a Day Makes”
Cumana, Venezuela
In this composite photo you are looking in the doors of each of our three operating rooms as they work on three patients at the same time. To date we have completed over 55 surgeries on patients. Our host... Read More »
Day 5 – More Smiles More Friends
Cumana, Venezuela
Samuel is a boy that was here three years ago, and I remember him well. He has a ready smile, a quick handshake, and he likes to tell stories. My favorite is his 101 girlfriends. I can see why he Read More »
Why We Volunteer
Cumana, Venezuela
When I share the Rotaplast story back home invariably I am asked if it is hard to find doctors and nurses for a mission. It is an amazing commitment of their skills and time yet on mission after mission th... Read More »
Last Day of Surgery
Cumana, Venezuela
Mission time is measured in days of surgery, and we have only seven days of surgery to accomplish our mission. Every day is important, but even more important is the safety of every child. Our team is focu... Read More »
Latest From Around The World
Surgical days 3-10
Nagamangala, India
Over the course of seven days, approximately 48 patients, ranging in age from just three months to 78 years old, are scheduled for various procedures, including cleft lip and palate repairs, as well as bur... Read More »
Day 2: Pre-surgical clini...
Nagamangala, India
The mission starts with a full-day of patient evaluations in a pre-surgical clinic. The surgeons, pediatricians and nurses evaluate each patient to determine whether the patient will be a good candidate fo... Read More »