Medical team visits hospital in Cebu, Philippines
A medical team from LLUMC recently visited the Harry W. Miller Memorial Sanitarium and Hospital in Cebu, Philippines, where they performed 26 procedures on 21 patients in three days.
Headed by Robert A. Hardesty, MD, chief, division of plastic and reconstructive surgery at Loma Linda University, the team was made up of Daniel B. Kim, MD, resident in plastic and reconstructive surgery; Octavius Cuizon Quijada, MD, anesthesiologist; and Lolita V. Hequibal, RN, operating room nurse supervisor.
"Most of the surgeries were performed on patients with craniofacial anomalies," says Dr. Kim. "Five bilateral cleft lip repairs, five unilateral cleft lip repairs, nine cleft palate repairs, cleft rhinoplasty, burn contracture releases, and other surgeries were performed."
The youngest patient was a 1-year-old, while the oldest patient was in her 50s. While all services were performed free of charge, the value of the services performed greatly exceeded $100,000.
Under the direction of Manual J. Tornilla, Jr., MD, medical director of Harry W. Miller Memorial Hospital, the medical staff worked long hours to serve every patient that needed help.
"Not a single patient was turned away," Dr. Kim relates. "Their dedication to patient care and hospitality were deeply appreciated."
Dr. Hardesty spoke at the Philippine College of Surgeons and Philippine Society of Anesthesiology at the Metro Cebu Community Hospital where he discussed "Reconstruction of Major Head and Neck Deformities." Dr. Quijada discussed "What's New in Stateside Anesthesia" at the same meeting.
"Through no fault of theirs, these children were born with deformities and marked for life to be castaways in society," Dr. Kim explains. "A few hours of surgery could mean a lifetime of difference for these children.
"Seeing the joy and hope in the patient's and family's eyes makes it all worth the effort."
Dr. Hardesty is planning to take "Operation Good Samaritan," as the Loma Linda team is known, on at least two medical mission trips per year. A return trip to Cebu is also in the planning stages.
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