Operation Smile Mission to Accra, Ghana
David A. Gudis, MD, University of Pennsylvania, AAO-HNS Resident Travel Grantee In December 2011, I embarked on a journey to Accra, Ghana, with Operation Smile to be part of a cleft lip and palate surgical mission. I was fortunate to receive the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation Humanitarian Resident Travel Grant, funded by the Alcon Foundation, and this generous award facilitated a life-changing experience for me. I had taken part in medical and surgical missions in developing countries before, but had never worked with such a large-scale, highly coordinated effort as Operation Smile. With transportation, accommodation, and meals provided by an impressive network of local public and private partnerships, we could screen more than 200 patients in the first two days of the mission. Our group included seven facial plastic and maxillofacial surgeons from four different countries, and in five days we managed to complete 125 operations. More importantly, the safety standards for each patient and procedure were comparable to our practices at home. While Ghana has escaped much of the crushing poverty and HIV/AIDS burden of other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, there remains a tremendous need for healthcare and education. Among the heartbreaking stories I heard was that of a father who was cutting firewood when a small wood chip hit his pregnant wife’s belly. A traditional healer confirmed his fear that the trauma caused his infant daughter’s torn lip. Ten years later, when his daughter could no longer bear the ridicule she endured at school, she stopped going altogether. When education is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty and poor healthcare, a cleft-lip operation is not a cosmetic procedure; it is a new chance at life. I originally intended to use the AAO-HNSF grant to return to Cange, Haiti, where I participated in a head and neck surgical mission last year, but the trip was indefinitely postponed because of security concerns. The silver lining was that I had the chance to be a part of this mission in Ghana, which convinced me to incorporate pediatric craniofacial surgery in my future career. I am tremendously grateful to the AAO-HNSF Humanitarian Efforts Committee for the opportunity to be a part of such a moving personal and professional experience.
David A. Gudis, MD, University of Pennsylvania, AAO-HNS Resident Travel Grantee

In December 2011, I embarked on a journey to Accra, Ghana, with Operation Smile to be part of a cleft lip and palate surgical mission. I was fortunate to receive the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation Humanitarian Resident Travel Grant, funded by the Alcon Foundation, and this generous award facilitated a life-changing experience for me.
I had taken part in medical and surgical missions in developing countries before, but had never worked with such a large-scale, highly coordinated effort as Operation Smile. With transportation, accommodation, and meals provided by an impressive network of local public and private partnerships, we could screen more than 200 patients in the first two days of the mission. Our group included seven facial plastic and maxillofacial surgeons from four different countries, and in five days we managed to complete 125 operations. More importantly, the safety standards for each patient and procedure were comparable to our practices at home.

While Ghana has escaped much of the crushing poverty and HIV/AIDS burden of other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, there remains a tremendous need for healthcare and education. Among the heartbreaking stories I heard was that of a father who was cutting firewood when a small wood chip hit his pregnant wife’s belly. A traditional healer confirmed his fear that the trauma caused his infant daughter’s torn lip. Ten years later, when his daughter could no longer bear the ridicule she endured at school, she stopped going altogether. When education is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty and poor healthcare, a cleft-lip operation is not a cosmetic procedure; it is a new chance at life.
I originally intended to use the AAO-HNSF grant to return to Cange, Haiti, where I participated in a head and neck surgical mission last year, but the trip was indefinitely postponed because of security concerns. The silver lining was that I had the chance to be a part of this mission in Ghana, which convinced me to incorporate pediatric craniofacial surgery in my future career. I am tremendously grateful to the AAO-HNSF Humanitarian Efforts Committee for the opportunity to be a part of such a moving personal and professional experience.