Mission Reports

South Africa:

Mt. Frere - August 27 to August 31, 2008

An Operation Smile team of medical and non-medical volunteers worked in Mt. Frere in South Africa to provide free physical examinations and surgery to children born with facial deformities. The volunteers were from China, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Swaziland and the United States, and they worked with a South African medical team to provide 57 free physical examinations and reconstructive surgeries to 29 children and young adults. In addition, 17 patients who were not at candidates for surgery during the mission were referred to Albert Luthuli Hospital in Durban, Frere Hospital in East London or Pretoria Academic in Pretoria. At one of those locations, the referred patients will be provided with the necessary medical care and be assessed for further treatment.

This mission was possible with the support of the Eastern Cape Province, the many sponsors of Operation Smile South Africa and the Durban Chapter volunteers.

This was the first Operation Smile medical mission to Mt. Frere. Since the organization’s first international mission to South Africa in 2006, Operation Smile medical volunteers have provided free physical examinations to 157 South African children suffering with facial deformities and 118 have received free reconstructive surgery.

First international mission: 2006
International mission sites: Empangeni
Local mission sites: Durban, Mt. Frere

Empangeni - September 7 to September 16, 2006

An Operation Smile team of international medical volunteers was in Empangeni, South Africa, from September 7-16, to provide free medical evaluations and reconstructive surgery to children suffering with facial deformities. More than 40 medical and non-medical volunteer team members, including plastic surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, pediatricians, dentists, speech pathologists and others, cared for children who suffer from cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities. This was Operation Smile's first medical mission in South Africa, which is Operation Smile's 25th mission country. The mission team, comprised of volunteers from South Africa, Brazil, Italy, Kenya, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, worked at Ngwelezana Hospital, in northern KwaZulu-Natal Province. The team provided 98 children and young adults with free medical evaluations and 59 patients received free reconstructive surgery.

This inaugural Operation Smile mission in South Africa was made possible thanks to the efforts of a global network of health ministries, other organizations and individuals who advocate for improved healthcare. In March 2006, Operation Smile South Africa registered as a section 21 company and opened an office in Cape Town, South Africa. Professor Anil Madaree, head of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of KwaZulu-Natal's Nelson R. Mandela's School of Medicine, serves as Operation Smile South Africa's Medical Director. The mission was carried out in collaboration with the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health and the locally based Star Smile Fund. This mission was also made possible by the Operation Smile South Africa volunteers and donors including but not limited to Amway, Cipla Medpro, South African Airways, Canefields Country House, South African Paper Mill, and Premier Foods. Operation Smile South Africa plans to conduct local missions in rural areas across the country and ultimately build the Foundation into a regional hub for treating children throughout Southern Africa.

In addition to working side-by-side with in-country doctors and nurses during international medical missions, Operation Smile volunteers also offer hands-on training and lectures during each international medical mission. During the mission in Empangeni, Operation Smile international volunteers and Operation Smile South Africa volunteers conducted educational lectures and discussions to provide medical information to South African surgeons, anesthesiologists and nurses.

First international mission: 2006
International mission sites: Empangeni

Photographer Chet Gordon of Port Chester, NY, volunteered his time and talent during the inaugural mission to South Africa. Below, are some of the amazing photos he captured.

Mission Images: (Click to enlarge)

Missions