Dr. Joyce Chen, Interplast Webster Fellow.
Not only are the volunteers terrific, the local hosts I have encountered have been spectacular. I spent a week in Portoviejo, Ecuador, with Interplast’s surgical outreach director Dr. Jorge Palacios (pictured far right). Dr. Palacios founded Fundacion Rostros Felicios (Happy Faces Foundation) more than 30 years ago after finishing a fellowship in the Bay Area where he worked with Dr. Don Laub, Interplast’s founder. In addition to performing hundreds of free surgeries each year as Interplast’s partner in Ecuador, Jorge also makes multiple trips a year in a refurbished school bus to the rural, underserved areas in Ecuador with his own nurses, current and previously trained plastic surgical residents, and anesthesiologists. The humanitarian spirit that he exudes is contagious and he instills so much loyalty in his team.
Finally, the patients who I’ve had the privilege to take care of are the very reason Interplast exists. With the political and economical disparity in these countries, the patients who we help do not have the financial access or means to receive care for their often deforming, functional problems. A cleft lip is not simply an aesthetic problem which in itself leads to social isolation and discrimination. A cleft lip also leads to feeding and nutrition issues; having a cleft palate compounds the problem. All too often, we also see chronic burn contractures causing debilitating functional disability, where patients cannot move their neck or use their fingers or hands. Our patients are very appreciative of our efforts, and many often travel by foot from afar to be treated. To see the gratitude in their eyes is tremendous and rewarding. I feel extremely privileged and humbled to have this opportunity with Interplast and look forward to my next six months!
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