Guatemala
OVERSEAS SURGICAL VOLUNTEERISM
Working with Plastic Surgeons overseas has been both a privilege and an honor. Through close partnerships with doctors, made possible by Interplast, I have expanded my professional and personal horizons. Together, we have achieved a great goal: Treating many underprivileged children who cannot afford surgery. We have performed cleft lip and palate, speech and burn surgery. These surgeries have been undertaken in many countries and continents.
I have had the honor of working with surgeons in Guatemala, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. I have been both student and teacher. It has been an amazing experience. My work with these surgeons continues. Not only do I continue to travel overseas to operate on underprivileged children, but on a nearly daily basis, I am in email contact with many. We discuss cases, outcomes and procedures. It is precisely this empowerment of local surgeons - helping them care for the needy - that has brought me a tremendous amount of joy. I ask that if you are a patient in my practice, please understand that at times, I may be unavailable as I travel overseas to help my colleagues deliver care to the indigent.
