So No Child Must Wait

Help Interplast win $1.5 million!

Interplast has the chance to win $1.5 million to help children and adults with disabling burns have a second chance at life. 

Would you please help Interplast win American Express's competition? 

It won't cost you any money and will take no more than 3 minutes!

You really can make a difference.  Just:

1. View our project at: http://www.membersproject.com/project/view/6U4Y86

2. Log in and nominate this project.  (Even if you are not an American Express cardholder, you can sign up as a guest; it's easy and quick.)

3. Spread the word to your friends and family and ask them to do the same!

The top contender right now has 2,500 votes.  With your help we can win $1.5 million---and that could help improve thousands of lives.

Inside the Villages of Quang Ngai

Originally uploaded by interplast

Deep inside the villages of Quang Ngai, Vietnam, Interplast's partner and anesthesiologist Dr. Nguyen Thi Hien has been spending her days recruiting patients in need ofreconstructive surgery. Because of the remote location, Dr. Hien was forced to take a train and then rent a van in order to reach the underserved villagers, traveling for hours just to get to the first village. Dr. Hien describes her journey as "very hard, but rewarding and interesting." 

The willingness of Interplast's partners to venture into remote areas in search of people in need speaks of their compassionate hearts and commitment to offer help to those who need it most.

Patient Follow Up

In 2005, Interplast visited Ganzhou City, China, on a surgical team trip. During that visit Dr. Scott Corlew, Interplast's chief medical officer, operated on a 14 year-old village girl with a cleft lip. When she arrived to the clinic, she was shy, unhappy and withdrawn. 

Today, now 17 years old, she is a migrant worker living in Shenzhen, China, earning more than2,000 yuan per month (about US$290). A very different person now, she is a happy, smiling, outgoing young girl, described as a natural leader at her workplace.

Rarely are we able to follow up with our patients and find out how their lives unfolded after their operations. Stories like these prove once more that the impactful work of our volunteers and international partners indeed contribute to improving the lives of those they reach.

Nepal’s Cleft Awareness Seminar

In July, Interplast's Surgical Outreach Center in Nepal held its first cleft awareness seminar, sharing the knowledge they have learned about cleft care over the years with other medical professionals.

Participants came from different local hospitals and NGOs throughout Nepal. The seminar was conducted by Dr. Shankar Man Rai and Dr. Kiran Nakarmi, Interplast's Surgical Outreach director in Nepal, along with other expert physicians.  Various cleft care issues were discussed, including counseling, pediatric care and evaluation, speech therapy and overall care of children with clefts until they reach adulthood.  A great success, the seminar expected 30 participants but the staff was delighted to host more than 70 people!