Panama

In Panama, where cleft care is out of reach for many families, Operation Smile medical volunteers ensure access to transformative care and ongoing support.

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Operation Smile Panama: By the Numbers

More than 30 years after our first surgery in Panama, Operation Smile continues to build local capacity for world-class cleft care.

1991

Year Services Began in Panama

4,800+

Cleft Surgeries

70+

Surgical Programs

Expanding Access to Care

To ensure that every child has access to care close to home, we equip the providers within our patients’ communities with skills and resources to deliver high-quality care. We build the needed capacity by harnessing the talent and resources that exist within the country, usually in the bigger cities, the hubs, to train providers in under-resourced areas, the spokes, where most patients lack access to care.

Our hub is based in Hospital Jose Domingo de Obaldia in David, where there is greater access to specialized care and advanced training, which we leverage to enable care in the spokes. Our spoke is based in Santiago in Hospital Chicho Fabrega.

Operation Smile’s care center in Panama City provides nonsurgical cleft care. Operation Smile has begun refurbishing the new care center in Panama City, which will significantly expand cleft care services.

Five-Year Vision

Over the next five years, Operation Smile will provide surgeries for over 1,030 patients in Panama. In addition, we will deliver consultations to over 2,300 patients, expanding access to comprehensive cleft care services.

Operation Smile will collaborate with hospitals to provide education and training across various specialties.

Operation Smile will ensure that the hospitals where our patients receive treatment have high-quality supplies and equipment. To expand access to cleft care, we will strengthen our relationship with the Ministry of Health, the Gorgas Institute and key stakeholders in the pharmaceutical industry.

Our Partners

NGOs: Operation Smile works closely with Relaciones Sanas, Fundacion Alberto Motta, Fundacion Sus Buenos Vecinos, Caravana de Asistencia Social, Fundacion Faro and Fundacion Causa Nuestra.

Government: Our partnerships with the Ministry of Health, the Panama Institute of Special Qualification (IPHE) and the Panamanian Social Security Fund (CSS) have allowed us to effectively implement cleft care programs. Furthermore, Panama’s firefighters volunteer for Operation Smile, effectively transferring large volumes of patients from one hospital area to another.

Universities: Residents from the University of Panama provide medical support during surgical programs, under the supervision of our dental coordinator. Universidad Católica Santa Marfa La Antigua (USMA) helps Operation Smile deliver high-quality psychological care. Universidad Especializada de las Americas (UDELAS) supports Operation Smile surgical programs by providing nurses and supplying us with medical instruments.