So No Child Must Wait

Interplast Welcomes 2009-2010 Webster Fellow Dr. Joyce Chen

Dr. Joyce Chen recently joined the Interplast team as this year's Webster Fellow. After earning a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and her medical degree from Duke University, Joyce completed ten years of surgical training which included fellowships in general surgery, craniofacial and pediatric plastic surgery, and plastic and reconstructive surgery. A medical volunteer trip to Haiti sparked her interest in international health, and helped lead her to Interplast.

Interplast has a busy year planned for her, and Joyce will not only participate as a surgeon and lecturer on team and visiting educator trips, but will also develop educational curricula and program evaluations that will have long-term impact for Interplast. We welcome Dr. Chen to the Interplast family and community, and look forward to the coming year.

Burn Patients

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Burn patients are the most dramatic in appearance.  How a person got burned varies from case to case, but in general, they are all related to some form of cooking accident.  Cooking on open fires or using fuel-based fires leads to many devastating accidents.  The result is facial, neck, trunk, and hand injuries on the front of the body. Poor families do not have access to electricity and live far away from hospitals or ambulances. Burn victims’ skin appears as if it were melted; the joints beneath these contractures can no longer find a way to function under that tight skin, making reconstructive surgery vital in order to salvage their functionality and movement.

Thoughtful Inquiries

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Two brothers came in together for the younger to be seen.  The older brother sat beside his brother while the younger was interviewed.  On a couple of occasions, the pediatrician would ask the patient a question, and at the same time the older brother nodded affirmation while the younger brother denied the issue at hand.  Then little brother was asked if he had any questions for us.  For the next 20 minutes, out came the most astute and careful questions I have ever heard from a child!  How long would he be asleep?  How long would they operate?  What were they going to do to him?  Would it hurt when he woke up?  And so on.  It was delightful and entertaining at the same time.

Capturing Bliss

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

There are always patients whom everyone remembers.  This picture captures Dr. Yogi playing with this tiny patient, bumping heads.  They were both laughing, and she was delighted by his attention. Whenever he would touch foreheads with her she would close her eyes and you could see the bliss in her face.  We all have differences around the world, but moments like these we can all savor the similarities. Witnessing Dr. Yogi's commitment to his patients and the love he treats them with was inspirational.

Immortalized Repairs

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Once I arrived at the hospital, Madhu, one of our coordinator/ translators, gave me a quick tour of the building.  I could hear the distant buzz of waiting families and volunteers organizing potential patients for their evaluations. 

As we walked, a pile near the building caught my attention. For the treatment of certain cases Dr. Yogi is required to make plaster casts of his patients’ faces. The pile was a collection of those plasters. Still expressions gazed out from the pile. It was haunting and beautiful at the same time, to see some of the facial deformities immortalized from before the repairs that transformed their owners.

The Hospital

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

The hospital is actually a converted two-story house.  The area for the physical and occupational therapy is upstairs.  Since this trip will consist mostly of burn patients, there will be much work to do post-operatively in the way of splints, range-of-motion, exercise, dressing changes, and education.

Our hosts are Interplast’s surgical outreach director, Dr. Yogi and his son Dr. Kush. Together they do much work for the people of this area year round. They are wonderful facilitators for our team, and assist and do cases too.  They are Interplast’s outreach partners and continue this invaluable work well after the team leaves.  It is the mission of Interplast not to come into an area and simply perform procedures, leaving a void behind, but to integrate, teach and eventually turn over the reconstructive surgical work to the local people. The old “teach a man to fish” approach. And that’s what Interplast has done here, but there is such a great need that teams are needed to help with the backlog of cases.

There are more than 10,000 burn victims (most of them children) in this area alone.  Most of them are extremely poor and would otherwise never have access to these procedures.  When they receive surgery, whether from Dr. Yogi and Dr. Kush or from the Interplast surgical team, they are forever grateful and many remain to help Dr. Yogi with his work.

An Eventful Walk to Clinic

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Clinic days are always fun on Interplast trips.  We get to meet so many families and children, and see how the local people dress and interact.

The team made its way to the clinic, which was a few miles beyond the hospital.  I was designated to finish set-up at the hospital on my way to the clinic.  I realized after everyone had left that I had no contact information for the transporter vans. So, with little encouragement and much delight, I walked to the hospital, which is not far from and on the same street as the hotel.

It was here that I remembered New Delhi from my many visits almost 35 years ago. Overloaded motorbikes, three-wheeled taxis, speeding cars, and lorries of all sizes.  The idea is to drive on the left, as in Britain, but this only happens when the road has a center divider that is several inches high.  Without the divider, all bets are off and the dance/slalom that results is amazing to see.  Add to this many pedestrians, bikes and random cows, and it is nothing short of chaos.  Into this I ventured to make my way to our little hospital.

At one point, I found myself walking behind a large white bull.  He had the shape of a Brahma bull and was every bit as large, with a large protrusion over his withers and long corkscrew horns with pointy ends.  The whole package was very threatening.  I think he might have been as tall as my shoulders, but each time I look back on this event, he seems to become taller and his horns longer and pointier.  I think now I can even see steam coming out his nostrils.

Finally the driveway of the hospital appeared.  It was obvious, because there is a large sign on the road that says, “Free Plastic Surgery Camp – Super Specialist Visiting From USA”, followed by all our names. One third of our team is from other countries (Nepal, India, Pakistan, and New Zealand), but that would be too long to list, I guess.  Behind the sign is a man sitting on the sidewalk under a canopy, selling bananas.  The whole experience feels surreal.

Setting Up the Operating Rooms

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

This evening, we quickly moved all boxes and bodies into various vans and vehicles and made our way to the hospital we will be using.  In no time, our colony of ants went to work loading, unloading, opening boxes, distributing goods, setting up two operating rooms, a central supply area, lounge and storage room, recovery room, occupational therapy consultation space, and an autoclave and equipment cleaning space.  Before our eyes, we created an operating room from top to bottom. Luckily, we already had walls, surgical beds, stands and storage shelves with which to work.  Everyone pitched in: the two surgeons, the two occupational therapists, the four nurses, the three anesthesiologists, the pediatrician and the two coordinator/translators.  We all start out very familiar with all aspects of the environment, which enables us to better work together to get things done.

Finally in Dehradun

Dehradun, India-Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Finally, it was time for the last leg of our trip, more than 48 hours for me after my original departure.  We all met in the lobby and loaded into the bus again by 9 a.m.  At this point, we met up with the remaining two of our team, Dr. Kiran Nakarmi, Interplast’s surgical outreach director in Nepal, and Mohan Dangol, an occupational therapist, also from Nepal.  The 14 of us arrived at the New Delhi Airport, went through very strict security, and on to our local flight to our final destination.  At least this time we did not have the large and heavy cases and boxes to deal with; they had gone on ahead in a truck to travel overland and meet us in Dehradun.

About an hour later, we made our approach into Dehradun.  Most of the flight was clouded below us, but as we descended, the air cleared.  We made our approach into the foothills of the Himalayas, which were covered with thick, lush greenery.  The mountains here are below the snow line, and covered with trees and large, bushy plants.  It is a large city, but then this is a very populated nation.

Everyone piled into the buses for the last time, all boxes and bags in tow.  The ride was our first introduction to this area, and it is beautiful.  Most notable to me was the large population of orange-ish Rhesus Monkeys, all parading and strolling along the road side.  They seem to make themselves at home in the road of speeding vehicles, and yet – while no one seems to avoid them or brake – there is no monkey road kill that I can see.

We arrived at our hotel in early afternoon, and our host’s son Dr. Kush, who is also a physician, his wife and children, and waiters with lemonade, greeted us. Dr. Kush’s wife and children ceremoniously decorated each of us with a garland of marigold and a Hindi mark of paint and rice grains on our foreheads.  We have officially arrived!

Arriving in a Different Time Zone

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

It’s amazing how much baggage everyone is carrying these days.  Either consumption or hoarding is way up; the new charges for checked bags are leading to bloated carry-ons, or a bit of both.  Hats, duty-free, roller suitcases that ought to be checked, baby diapers, souvenirs, books and cosmetics—the overhead bins are brimming to the point that openers take the risk of being showered with chunks and parts that have shifted during take-off.

We finally landed in New Delhi, in a time zone that is 12.5 hours later than San Francisco, which meant we arrived the evening of Saturday, September 12.  We were all hot, sweaty, disoriented and ready to bolt off the plane.  A bus met us, but it took some time to get our personal baggage, pick up the boxes, and get through customs. Luckily with us were coordinator/translators Jogi and Madhu, who both speak Hindi and could get us through the bureaucracy and protocol.

By the time we hooked up with our 13th team member from New Zealand, loaded 45 boxes and bags, got 12 people and their carry-ons inside the bus and headed for the hotel, it was almost midnight. For most of us, this is a large time change, and it was difficult to remember which end was up.  We limped into our rooms and fell into bed.

San Francisco to Chicago

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Up early, to the shuttle, and into the airport, again.  This is starting to feel like a recurring theme.  Today marks the anniversary of September 11, so it is a stressful date to travel by air, but I can’t focus on that. Slowly some of the team members arrive, a total of five of us who are traveling from California. We were all assembled when the boxes arrived from Interplast.  Sixteen cartons and 17 hearty black boxes, all packed to the gills.  The supplies in the cartons are used during the trip, so we only return with the 17 plastic boxes. 

Our 9:45 am plane was delayed, and we finally boarded at 10:30.  We sat on the runway for a while, and then we were off.  Luckily we had a long layover in Chicago, so we were not late. In Chicago we caught up with the additional six team members. Then we were 11, and it was time to board.  Not surprisingly, we spent a lot of time on the tarmac in Chicago, leaving about an hour late.  It has not been a good day for “on-time arrivals.”

These are times of another swine flu scare, and we had a bag of masks for the team to wear if anyone wanted.  I had my mask out, but was delighted to find that rare empty seats surrounded me.

The germ zone was not wrapped so tightly around me, and I also had room to stretch out, which made for a much nicer 14-hour flight.

First Leg of the Trip

Dehradun, India--Bonnie MacEvoy, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

I left my hometown of Arcata, California, headed to San Francisco, where I’ll be meeting up with the rest of the team headed to Dehradun, India for a two-week surgical team trip. The flight was delayed because of fog, and the Sacramento flight had already been diverted from our airport. I was starting to feel grim when all of a sudden the plane arrived! After finally getting to San Francisco, I rode the shuttle to my hotel and tried to get some sleep before our early departure the next morning.

Disabled Children Don't Go Back To School

Photo by Phil Borges.

Last week, as I drove to work, a familiar image struck me--my neighbor's children rushing out of their home in excitement for their first day of school. Hair neatly combed, new backpacks on their shoulders and a school year full of possibilities ahead.

This image re-emphasized in my mind the importance of the work Interplast does. Children around the world are heading back to the classroom. But in the developing world, the excitement of a first day of school is only a dream if your child has a disability, like a severe burn or hand injury.  Getting an education is unlikely.  According to UNICEF, 90 percent of children with disabilities do not attend school in the developing world.  Children with disabilities are left behind.

However, for many of these children, free reconstructive surgical care could make a lifetime of difference.  It could repair their disabling injuries and deformities, allowing them to attend school and have a chance at a brighter future.

Donate today and give children with correctable disabilities the possibility of education and the gift of an exciting first day at school.

Thank you,



Susan W. Hayes, President & CEO

World Humanitarian Day

Photo courtesy of the United Nations.

In honor of this first World Humanitarian Day, the United Nations created a powerful video with a message from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, highlighting the importance of humanitarian efforts around the world and inspiring us all to renew our commitment to our global community.

Although Interplast does not send volunteers to troubled regions, we would like to recognize our developing world doctors who serve the poor every day, and our devoted volunteers for the invaluable work they do.

In the words of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, “These men and women come from many backgrounds but they share a conviction that one person’s suffering is everyone’s responsibility.”

To all humanitarians on this day, we thank you and admire you for your ongoing commitment to serving those in need.

Dalai Lama Honors Interplast Nepal Director

Photo by Michael Yamshita

A few months ago, we announced that Dr. Shankar Man Rai, director emeritus of Interplast’s surgical outreach center in Nepal, had been named an “Unsung Hero of Compassion.”

On April 26, 2009, the “Unsung Heroes of Compassion Ceremony” was held at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco, California. It was a touching and humbling event, honoring 49 individuals from across the globe for their service to the worldwide community. Each honoree received a ‘kata,’ a traditional Tibetan blessed scarf, from His Holiness the Dalai Lama as they walked across the stage to receive his blessing. 

The honorees, extremely passionate and generous individuals, head humanitarian causes ranging from the promotion and practice of interfaith dialogue among women in the Middle East to free clinics providing aid for autistic children in Thailand.

Among the honorees was Interplast’s very own Dr. Shankar Man Rai, who has trained more than 50 medical professionals with whom he has performed more than 10,000 free reconstructive surgeries in Nepal. He has taken his efforts to aid the people of Nepal one step further by setting up speech therapy camps to help more than 2,250 children in rural Nepal with their speech impediments. As he continues with his wonderful work, Dr. Rai never forgets his roots. Born to a poor farming family and the first in his family to become an educated professional, Dr. Rai brings a unique empathy for the patients he helps.

Dick Grace, activist, head of Grace Family Vineyards, and one of the co-hosts of the event, summed up the sentiments of those in the room as he explained, “My gurus are the burned, my gurus are the ill, my gurus are the undereducated, my gurus are those without access to opportunity, my gurus are those who are challenged and meet those challenges with dignity.” As Jack Kornfield, a renowned Buddhist teacher, stated about the event, it is “more than anything…about the values of the heart.”

Interplast Featured in Alaska Airlines’ Employee Newsletter

 Nisha Chaudry, a customer service agent for Alaska Airlines, volunteered with Interplast as a coordinator/translator for a surgical team trip to Dehradun, India in February 2009. Thirteen years after her last visit to India, Nisha was eager to see exactly how changed her homeland was. With high expectations, some anxiety, but mostly excitement, she embarked on both a personal journey and a quest to help others.

Recently, Nisha wrote about this journey and her experience as a volunteer, and the story was published in Alaska Airlines’ employee newsletter. She mentioned, “As a translator, my job was to ask the long line of people waiting to be seen at the clinic how they were injured…I was struck by the physical and emotional pain they live with. It was easy to feel despair, but, instead, I found hope in the eyes of these strangers.”  To read Nisha’s full story click here. 

Despite Economic Downturn, Interplast Has Best Year Ever

Despite the economic downturn, Interplast increased donations by 25 percent over previous years. 

When we closed the fiscal year on Tuesday, our donors and supporters had helped us reach $4.4 million to transform lives around the world.  In FY08, our cash revenue total was $3.5 million.

“Our job at Interplast is to make sure that, even in these challenging economic times, our patients do not suffer from lack of care.  For the desperately poor who need medical care, every day is a struggle, whether we are in a recession or not.  We are deeply grateful to our donors for helping us meet their surgical needs," said Susan W. Hayes, Interplast president and CEO.

"This increase, an incredible achievement, happened because of our supporters, our committed board and because Interplast is a healthy organization with strong leadership, a clear mission and purpose, and programmatic integrity," said Nicole Friedland, Interplast's chief development officer.

As we enter our new fiscal year, we are hopeful this support will continue to grow allowing us to reach the many patients around the world waiting for help.  To all our donors and supporters who made this possible, thank you!

New Trip Season Schedule

Here at Interplast, our work never fully comes to an end. As our 2008-2009 trip season ended last month, we are already gearing up for our 2009-2010 trips to begin! As all the logistics, coordination and preparations are underway to begin our new trip season, the countries our medical volunteers will be visiting have been selected and dates have been determined. Please visit our website to see our 2009-2010 trip schedule and stay tuned for more stories from the field as the new trip season begins.

Photo by Adam Forgash.

Interplast Interns

Interplast’s summer 2009 internship program began this week with students from all across the country dedicating their summer vacations to helping others.  This bright group of students come from various universities including: Duke University, Scripps College, St. Louis University, University of California Berkeley and University of California San Diego.  The energy and enthusiasm they bring to the office is refreshing and inspiring for the whole staff. We want to thank our 2009 interns and welcome them to the Interplast family!

Visiting Educators in Guayaquil

Interplast’s visiting educator (VE) program sends volunteer medical professionals to developing countries to provide direct, hands-on training to local medical personnel who work with the poor.

Recently, we sent volunteer orthodontists, Dr. Haskell Gruber and Dr. Lesley Samuels and lab technician Dr. George Knight, to Guayaquil Ecuador to work with Interplast partner orthodontist, Dr. Elsie Tafur Chang.  Dr. Tafur works closely with Dr. Jorge Palacios, Interplast surgical outreach director, ensuring  Dr. Palacios’ cleft lip and palate patients receive the follow-up orthodontic treatment they need. This process allows Interplast to offer its patients the best comprehensive care possible.

During our VE’s visit, they brought with them $19,000 of donated orthodontic supplies and equipment for Dr. Tafur to use in her practice. Additionally, Interplast was able to help provide Dr. Tafur with the funds necessary to purchase a new orthodontic chair set.

Dr. Tafur is thrilled with her new equipment and supplies. Since becoming an Interplast partner in December she has evaluated over 150 patients, and started treatment on 109 of them, all for about $56 a patient.

Interplast La Paz Team

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

I have heard many times that Interplast team members are highly trained and highly skilled professionals, so it is not a great surprise to see that this is the case for this La Paz team.  However, what surprised me is how warm and comforting the team members are.  Anesthesiologists and recovery room nurses bring patients back in such a gentle way.  I see them caring, hugging, rocking little kids to make them feel better.  The pediatrician makes sure the patients have all they need.   It is also quite emotional to see the nurses bring the kids back to the anxious parents after surgery. Witnessing the joy and relief of the parents is very moving.

Fernando

La Paz, Bolivia- Loan Le, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

I can not tell you how grateful I am that I have proficient grasp of the Spanish language. It has added a whole other dimension of enjoyment to this trip. The other day, I had dropped off Fernando, an adorable boy who had surgery on his arm, to the recovery room. A half hour later I heard Fernando was awake and extremely restless.

I entered the recovery room to find three nurses trying to calm him down.  I sat down at his bedside and asked him why he was crying. Fernando opened his eyes and said, "Doctorcita, donde estoy?"(Doctor, where am I?) What followed was a slew of questions: Who are these people? Why is there red on my arm? (blood soaking through his bandage) As he asked each question, he would close his eyes to ponder and digest the answer I offered him. When he finally ran out of questions, he simply closed his eyes to rest. It turns out he was just freaked out after waking up from anesthesia. Imagine waking up all by yourself in a room full of foreign medical staff trying to calm you down. I stroked his forehead and told him to get some sleep and that he’d see his parents when he woke up. He nodded, sighed and then fell into a peaceful slumber.

Surgery Day

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

Today was the first day of surgeries and it is my first time “awake” in an operating room.       I am impressed by the hard work everybody has to put in and the teamwork involved.  Anesthesiologists, surgeons and insanely busy OR nurses all do their best. Some of these surgeries go on for hours. Dr. Jorge Terraza, our host in La Paz, is very involved with the team.  Local residents are there to assist, as are local nurses.  It is clear that the training mission of Interplast is an important component of the team’s visit in La Paz.  The effort is amazing. Days are long, people are tired, but nobody complains.

The Studious Lisbeth

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

Lisbeth is 10 years old. During clinic day I could sense a hint of worry in her eyes. Later I found out she was more deeply preoccupied with missing school than with the surgery she was being scheduled to receive.  Lisbeth was scheduled to have her extra thumb amputated the next day.

After seeing Lisbeth I looked around the room of patients who gathered hoping for help. There were many burn victims, patients suffering from debilitating arthritis and congenital malformations.  The need is great, but the team is ready to do as much as it can in two weeks.  It is a very moving day. 

Emerson’s Argument

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

Emerson is a precocious 7-year-old boy with whom I was very impressed on clinic day.  He walked into the room and proceeded to explain to the medical team why he did not need surgery and carefully referenced his x-ray. Fortunately for him, the team was not convinced by his arguments.      I am sure he will be happy with the outcome, but I understand his fear of the process. 

Eddyn

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

Our first patient was Eddyn, a shy but sweet 2-year-old.  His mother was very relieved to learn her son would be scheduled to receive surgery the next day.  When I took the picture above, she was happy to smile for both of them.

Just As Expected

France Leclerc, Interplast board member.

Clinic day is when potential patients are evaluated and decisions are made as to whether the team can perform surgery on a given patient or offer needed physical therapy.  I had been told that this would be chaotic as large crowds usually show up.  It was indeed the case. People in line were from all over the country; they waited for hours and, as they did, hoped for help.

Dealing with the Altitude

La Paz, Bolivia- Loan Le, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

Today we spent some time walking around and trying to acclimate to the altitude. The key is to stay hydrated, and we are taking altitude medication that helps prevent altitude sickness. Despite my best efforts, I could not avoid a gnawing headache for a good part of the morning. Being at this high altitude means we're closer to the sun, so on sunny days, it is 10 degrees warmer than the actual temperature predicted. If you plan on coming here, bring sunscreen, dark shades, and a wide-brimmed hat.

Bolivia’s Blue Sky

La Paz, Bolivia- Loan Le, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

We arrived in La Paz at 5:30 a.m.; going through customs was haphazard, but easy enough. La Paz is located 12,008 ft above sea level. As we left the airport I was struck with two thoughts: it's beautiful here, high up where the blue skies are oh so blue, and wow this air is thin!

Getting Settled In

Getting Settled In
Originally uploaded by interplast

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China- Cindy Shih, Interplast volunteer coordinator/ translator.

So here we are on a Sunday afternoon, all checked in to the Hongfu Jinlan hotel in Ak’su, which, by the way, is really nice! We had our team meeting earlier to discuss some logistics for tomorrow’s big clinic day, and we’re resting up to meet again at 4:15 p.m. for our first visit to the hospital. The plan is to set up the operating room, check out our supplies, and figure out what else we might need. I’ll let the experts figure out which type of suture they might need, and when they will be doing the hemogram test. I’m not even really sure what that is. My big task will be to find out where we can get SIM cards or calling cards around town, and buy some bottled water for the team. I’ll also need to start transcribing our team leader Beverly's welcome speech for the big banquet tonight. You can find a picture of us above. Wish us luck over here!

Wrestling our Luggage

Wrestling our Luggage
Originally uploaded by interplast

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China- Cindy Shih, Interplast volunteer coordinator/ translator.

At Ak’su, we were greeted by folks from the China Population Welfare Foundation at the national, provincial, and local levels of the organization. The airport was no more than a building with kiosks, and the baggage claim consisted of a warehouse and a truck. When we got off the plane, the officers pointed us left of the building, and we all gathered around a truck to wrestle our luggage and boxes into a van. Moving all 34 pieces of luggage onto three flights was no small feat, so we were all extremely excited that everything (barring Deb’s luggage- sorry Deb) made it to Ak’su in one piece.

Journey to Ak’su

Journey to Ak’su
Originally uploaded by interplast

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China- Cindy Shih, Interplast volunteer coordinator/ translator.

After a 46-hour journey, the 16-member team landed in the Ak’su airport. The journey went (mostly) without a hitch, except for one lost luggage (Deb’s, our volunteer anaesthesiologist), some doubts that I was really who I am on my passport, and threats of exorbitant excess baggage fees. To be completely fair, we were “only” checking in 34 pieces of luggage that weighed over 700 kgs. With all that weight, I’m surprised they let us get on some of those small propeller planes that carried 50 passengers! Honestly, I was more than a bit worried on our domestic flight from Urumqi to Ak’su. Luckily, the view was so distractingly gorgeous that it made us forget we were travelling on a tiny, old plane, traversing treacherous-looking, snow-capped mountains.

A Celebration of Giving

Last Friday, the 7th grade students of Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School invited Interplast to “A Celebration of Giving:  7th Grade Tzedakah Project”. Tzedakah, a Hebrew word, means charity and is based on a root meaning of justice. Each student participating in the project selected a charity of her or his choice, researched, interviewed its staff and presented the findings to the class. Along with all their research the students organized several fundraising events and even donated money from their own Bar and Bat Mitzvahs to a fund for the non-profits they were researching.

After months of hard work, the students engaged in an extensive voting process to allocate the funds to the nonprofits as they saw fit. Together they raised almost $30,000 for the organizations!

Ilana Gordon selected Interplast as her nonprofit project. She contacted the office and stopped by to meet our staff and learn more about our programs. After Ilana created an amazing display (pictured below) and gave a compelling presentation, her class chose to give Interplast the third largest gift of all those awarded.  Other organizations that received gifts included the Sierra Club, Room to Read, and LiveStrong Foundation, among others. 

The Tzedakah Project celebration was truly an inspiration, and we want to thank Ilana for being an Interplast advocate. Michael Demian, associate director of foundations, and Liliana Vazquez, communications and technology coordinator, attended the awards presentation and celebration event. They are pictured above with Ilana, who hopes to pursue a medical career and join Interplast in its mission to heal bodies and change lives around the world. We look forward to that day with as much enthusiasm as Ilana has already demonstrated for our cause.

Interplast Saddened by Death of Devoted Volunteer, Dr. Ruth Carr

Interplast is deeply saddened to learn of Dr. Ruth Carr’s death.  She was a devoted volunteer, whose skills as a plastic surgeon helped transform the lives of more than 350 poor children in developing countries.  She corrected their cleft lips, repaired their hands and healed their bodies after burn injuries. In doing so, Ruth gave them a second chance at life.  

Over the years, she generously gave more than four months of her time, working long hours in trying conditions without pay.  But Ruth would say that her compensation was the joy and gratitude she received from the parents of her patients, whose hope for their children’s future was restored with the surgeries she performed.  We too are deeply grateful for all of the good she did in the world and for her generous support. 

Ruth will be greatly missed, and Interplast grieves with her family and her friends.  For more about Ruth and her memorial service, please read her obituary in the Los Angeles Times.

Interplast Included in Peter Singer’s “The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty”

Interplast is honored to be included in world-renowned ethicist and Princeton professor Peter Singer’s widely acclaimed book, “The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty.” 

The premise of the book is that if we could easily save the life of a child, we would--- and that most of us living in affluent countries can and should do more. It challenges readers “to give a modest proportion of their income to effective organizations fighting extreme poverty” in order to solve world poverty. 

Interplast is mentioned as one of those effective organizations, based in part on watch-dog group Give Well’s favorable evaluation of us.  “Interplast doesn’t save lives, but Give Well included it in [its most effective organizations category] because it transforms them so dramatically.  Interplast corrects deformities like cleft palates, and helps burn victims so that they can walk or use their hands again,” writes Singer.  “The procedures performed are often relatively simple and would be routine in rich nations, but for the poor in the developing world, getting to a surgeon is often impossible…. Life-changing procedures anywhere, the surgeries are even more so in poor countries, where discrimination against people with deformities is often much more severe than in rich nations.”

The book also discusses in interesting detail the psychology of giving and how there needs to be a cultural shift in giving to end poverty. “Research has shown that people are more likely to give if they know that others are giving.  So we need to be upfront about our giving.”

Interplast is one of 15 charities recommended for donations on the book’s website.   Singer also recently wrote to us, “I just wanted to add my own appreciation of your work at Interplast.  I do hope the book helps you gain further support.”  While we do not know if it has yet, we do know his website endorsement and numerous book interviews have increased traffic to our website.  We thank Professor Singer for including us in his book and most importantly, for his work trying to make the world a better place for all.

To learn more, visit "The Life You Can Save”, or numerous interviews and reviews, including The New York Times, The Chrisitan Science Monitor  or NPR.  

Interplast Nepalese Surgeon with Farming Roots Tours Pescadero Farm

Nepalese Surgeon with Farming Roots Tours Pescadero Farm
Originally uploaded by interplast

People in other countries are so hospitable to Interplast when we travel. We try to return the hospitality when our partners come here, but when Dr. Shankar Man Rai (our Nepalese director emeritus who was here receiving an honor from the Dalai Lama) asked to see a farm, we were not quite sure where to turn.

We called Flea Street Café in Menlo Park because they are known for their devotion to organic food and the local food movement. If anyone would have some good ideas, they would. The manager, Julianna, graciously encouraged me to contact Fat Cabbage Farm in Pescadero. We really appreciate her kindness and efforts to connect us.

With less than a day’s notice, Fat Cabbage Farm welcomed us to tour their new organic farm. It was a wonderful experience. The farm partners Miranda Roberts, Paul Richeson and Brian Coltrin took time out of their busy day to show us around their beautiful acreage in Pescadero. They answered the numerous questions Shankar had about farming in the United States.

As Shankar grew up on a farm in Nepal and comes from a long line of farmers, we all discussed the differences and similarities between organic farming here and subsistence farming in Nepal, where farming is primarily done by the very poor and uneducated who have not changed their methods in generations because the risk of failure is too great, i.e. their family might not eat for a season.

It was good to be able to do something nice for Shankar, who devotes his life to the poor in Nepal. We are very thankful to Fat Cabbage Farm for creating this experience for him. We are also very thankful to Jesse Ziff Cool and Drew, who kindly welcomed us to tour another CoolEatz garden/farm in Palo Alto that evening.

It was a special day, filled with great people doing great work---and I suspect it will be one that we all remember for awhile.

Visit our flickr.com set for more farm photos.

Because She Taught You To Care For Others

Photo by Phil Borges

This Mother's Day honor a mother in your life with a meaningful gift: surgical care for impoverished children provided in her honor.  Your gift will transform the lives of disfigured and disabled children and give hope and joy to mothers across the globe.  

Just visit Interplast's website, make a donation and then send the lovely card shown above to all the mothers you love and honor.

To see pictures of mothers whose children we help around the world, please visit our Mother’s Day photo gallery.

My time with APROQUEN

Originally uploaded by interplast

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

Visiting APROQUEN has been a true blessing; the staff is compassionate, the center is well established and their interdisciplinary team is ideal for the holistic approach necessary in burn treatment. During my visit we worked on techniques to help prevent the formation of contractures and team building activities. It’s been very rewarding to see the staff adopt the new team building concepts and truly realize that their work is made easier because of the help they provide each other. Some would even hug every day before rounds in the mornings! I hope my time here has helped the staff come together as a stronger team as they continue their mission to deliver the best care for the children they serve.

Pedrito

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

 

Today I met Pedrito and was immediately captured by his sweet nature. One would never know the tragic story behind his burns. Pedrito is 2 years old and was both abused and neglected by his parents. After he suffered his burn (to which I still don’t have full details) he and his brother were taken to live at an abused children shelter. Today, Pedrito is recovering well and the success to his recovery is due to the wonderful staff at APROQUEN, the shelter where he now lives, but most importantly to Pedrito himself, who is very cooperative and a smart little boy.  At one point during my visit, he even took the Vaseline gel (good for keeping burn contractures moisturized) and started massaging his legs on his own. Pedrito has gained full functionality and mobility of his legs and is able to do daily activities on his own, like putting on his shirt.  At the end of our therapy session Pedrito gave me a warm hug!

Jefferson

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

Jefferson is an adorable 2-month-old who was burned while sleeping in his home. The candle that was lighting the room tipped over engulfing the mattress Jefferson was sleeping on in flames. I worked with a team of physical therapists, nurses and his mother to exercise Jefferson’s burn contractures.
The next day Jefferson’s hip was looser and his fingers were back to their normal position. Jefferson was even able to give me a beautiful thank you smile.

Games as therapy

Originally uploaded by interplast

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

This 2-year-old also had the misfortune of falling into a pile of burning trash. Six weeks ago he received surgery to release his burn contracture. Prior to his surgery, his hand was pinned shut which made it difficult for him to use and very painful. During his therapy today we incorporated some games to facilitate the use of his hands and fingers. A day after our therapy session he was better able to pick up items around him!

Felix

Originally uploaded by interplast

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

Felix is a playful 3-year-old whose arm was badly burned when he fell into a pit of burning garbage.
He and his mom live in a shelter while he receives his rehabilitation treatment here at APROQUEN. Today, I spent time teaching his mother how to correctly massage his arm and worked with Felix on his hand therapy to better allow him to use his fingers.

Heading to Managua

Managua, Nicaragua- Maribel Markines, Interplast volunteer visiting educator.

My name is Maribel Markines, and I have been a physical therapist for 18 years. Currently I work at the Tampa General Hospital where I have been working for 10 years. This is my first experience going on an Interplast trip as a visiting educator to Asociacion Pro Ninos Quemados de Nicaragua (APROQUEN) in Nicaragua. 

Star Sticker!

Originally uploaded by interplast

Quy Nhon, Vietnam-Fran Cunniffe, Interplast medical education and outreach coordinator.

Today we were supposed to operate on a brother and sister, both with polydactyly (extra fingers). When we did our morning rounds, we discovered that only Manh, the 3-year-old boy, had shown up with his parents. His older sister could not bear the thought of missing even a day of school, and her parents decided to put off the surgery. Manh was excited for his surgery though, especially after our translator Emma told him she would give him star stickers after his surgery. We successfully removed his extra thumb, and the very first thing he said when he woke up from anesthesia was "star sticker!" Here he is proudly displaying his stickers.

Alice

Originally uploaded by interplast

Quy Nhon, Vietnam-Fran Cunniffe, Interplast medical education and outreach coordinator.

Alice, our fabulous pediatrician, unfortunately broke her ankle over the weekend. Our chief surgeon Ben sprung into action and performed a reduction on the spot, and made a temporary splint with his backpack. He was able to put a cast on her foot as soon as we got back to the hotel on Saturday, and the hotel lent us a wheelchair so she can still get around. All this has not stopped her from taking care of our patients though!

Transforming boxes into an operating room

Quy Nhon, Vietnam- Karina Rando, Interplast volunteer anesthesiologist.

On every trip Interplast provides the necessary equipment and supplies to offer excellent quality service to its patients. All the equipment and supplies are transported by plane from San Francisco in nearly 30 big boxes.  After the team arrived in Saigon, the boxes were taken to Quy Nhon by truck.

The local Hospital in Quy Nhon generously let us use some of their operating rooms.  Even though we were provided with the two operating tables, oxygen and lights, most of the equipment was transported (as on every trip) in the boxes.

After many hour s of hard work, the empty operating room was transformed into a safe and fully functional operating room where we performed all our surgeries.  All the equipment and supplies we needed to provide high quality anesthesia and surgeries were available.  

At the end of these two weeks all our equipment was carefully packed back into the boxes. Every team member helps in this process and watches after our precious boxes until each one is safe back to San Francisco, so that they are available for the next trip!

Coloring Stress Away

Originally uploaded by interplast

Quy Nhon, Vietnam-Fran Cunniffe, Interplast medical education and outreach coordinator.

Many of the children we operate on are very nervous before surgery. Imagine how they feel - they are taken away from their parents by people they do not know, and are not sure what to expect. Ronald McDonald House Charities helps us not only by supporting many of our programs, but also by providing us with coloring books and crayons to send on trips. The kids love to draw, and it definitely calms them before surgery. Karina, one of our anesthesiologists, (shown above) treats every child like her own. The kids love her!

Nga’s Center

Quy Nhon, Vietnam-Mark Friedlander, Interplast volunteer chief anesthesiologist.

The city of Quy Nhon is fortunate to have as one of its citizens a woman by the name of Nga. Nga, without any funding or support, started a centre for disabled children in Quy Nhon. Over many years she has developed a centre for vocational skills training where deaf, mute, blind and other disabled children learn to function and earn a living in ways that would otherwise be an impossibility for them in Vietnam.

Nga has also assisted and referred patients to Interplast trips. The Interplast team visited the centre where we learned about its history, were entertained by the musical and dancing skills of deaf, mute and blind children. We purchased garments, hats and bags skillfully made by Nga’s centre. Nga also arranged the custom production of OR scrubs embroidered with the Interplast logo, a popular item for the team.

Assisting the centre is an excellent way of promoting Interplast in the local community, and at the same time assisting these children in a small yet impactful way.

Dalai Lama to Honor Interplast Nepal Director

Dr. Shankar Man Rai, director emeritus of Interplast’s surgical outreach center in Nepal, has been named an “Unsung Hero of Compassion” and will receive the honorary award from the Dalai Lama on April 25-26, 2009 at ceremonies in San Francisco.

This prestigious international award is given only every few years to “individuals who, through their loving kindness and service to others, have made their communities and our world a better place.”  The "Unsung Heroes of Compassion" awards are given through Wisdom in Action, a California based foundation. They were previously given in 2005 and 2001.

Interplast congratulates Dr. Rai for restoring the hope and functionality for thousands of poor children in Nepal through reconstructive surgery.  Born to a poor farming family himself, he has dedicated his entire career to the comprehensive health and well-being of children living in poverty in Nepal and across the developing world.    As an incredibly gifted reconstructive plastic surgeon and outreach director, Dr. Rai has provided more than 10,000 free surgeries for impoverished children with clefts, disabling burn and hand injuries.  He has also helped more than 2,250 children in rural Nepal heal their speech impediments through the speech therapy camps he founded.

To learn more about Dr. Rai, watch the short documentary “Reasons for Hope” or read his biography.

“...The best investment of human effort I've ever been part of."

Phan Rang, Vietnam-Kathy Yates, Interplast board member.

I was tremendously impressed by the extraordinarily high level of professsionalism and commitment shown by my team members in serving these patients.   If not for their dedicated attention to every detail of the surgical procedures and the  post-operative healing period, these children would be facing lives of social ostracism and extreme hardship. But because sixteen highly skilled volunteers gave so willingly of their time and talents to the Interplast mission, literally hundreds of people are facing a more positive future. It was the best investment of human effort I've ever been part of.