In its Inaugural Medical Mission to Rwanda, Operation Smile Creates 248 New Smiles

In its first mission ever to Rwanda, Operation Smile, Inc., a worldwide children’s medical charity, and Operation Smile South Africa brought together a team of 70 people from 5 countries to carry out a milestone medical mission in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. In just nine days, 372 patients were screened and 248 facial reconstructive surgeries were performed for children suffering from cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities. The result: new smiles, new hope and a new life for so many Rwandans.

The patients included 3-year-old Dancille, who was teased and shunned all her life. And 14-year-old Eugenie, who arrived at the Operation Smile site stunted and malnourished as a result of extreme poverty and her cleft lip. Eugenie was an orphan who, until two years ago, wandered the streets begging for food and shelter. She and her guardian traveled by foot and bus for hours to reach the Operation Smile mission site. Now, along with 246 other children, Dancille and Eugenie are given a new chance at life – able to eat, drink, speak and go to school just like their peers.

From March 6-15, 2010, the South African medical team – joined by medical volunteers from the United States, Kenya, Canada and Italy, as well as volunteers from the Peace Corps and the American Medical Student Association – worked tirelessly at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Kigali to provide the highest number of operations ever for an Operation Smile South Africa mission. Rwanda was chosen as a new mission site after Operation Smile South Africa conducted a prescreening in September 2009, when 333 patients suffering from cleft lip and cleft palate were identified. Operation Smile is returning to Rwanda on September 16, 2010 for a six-month post-operative review.

Each year around the world, more than 200,000 children are born with a cleft lip and/or cleft palate, and are often unable to eat, speak, socialize or smile. With the help of medical volunteers and generous donations, Operation Smile provides free surgeries to children worldwide to heal smiles. Operation Smile ensures every patient cared for benefits from the same sophisticated equipment, procedures and highly trained, credentialed staff. For updates on Operation Smile’s global efforts and to read more about the Rwanda mission, visit the daily blogs on www.operationsmile.org, follow @operationsmile on Twitter, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/operationsmile.

Operation Smile identified Rwanda as a new site at the recommendation of Partners In Health. The cooperation and support Operation Smile South Africa received from the Ministry of Health and local partners was unprecedented. Sponsors included UNICEF, RwandAir, ENGEN, ERICSSON, Nakumatt Super Market, Rotary Club, Sulfo Industries, Akagera Business Group, MTN, the South African Embassy, and the U.S. Embassy.

Rwanda is a very rural society, whose population is approximately 10 million, with an estimated 800,000 in Kigali. The infant mortality rate is 83.4 deaths per 1,000, and life expectancy is only 49.8 years. Rwanda's population density is one of the highest in continental Sub-Saharan Africa. During the 1994 genocide, up to 1 million Rwandans were murdered, another 2 million fled, and another million were displaced internally. The international community responded with one of the largest humanitarian relief efforts ever mounted. (Statistics provided by U.S. Department of State Web site.)

About Operation Smile (www.operationsmile.org)
Founded in 1982 by Dr. Bill and Kathy Magee, Operation Smile, headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, is a worldwide children’s medical charity whose network of global volunteers are dedicated to helping improve the health and lives of children and young adults. Since its founding, Operation Smile has treated more than 145,000 children born with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities and the organization has a presence in more than 50 countries. In addition to contributing free medical treatment, Operation Smile trains local medical professionals in its partner countries and leaves behind crucial equipment to lay the groundwork for long-term self-sufficiency.