What another rewarding year for me! This was my third year in Ayacucho, and despite being exhausted from so many long, grueling days in the OR, I left once again with an immense feeling of satisfaction of being able to help so many people. The most meaningful part of my week was being a part of the operations for our kiddos that came from so far away to have their cleft lips repaired. I was able to meet the kids from Puno Sunday morning as they arrived at the hotel just as our plastic surgeons walked in for the airport. Seeing the looks of desperation on the parents' faces as the surgeons put down their bags and sat in the courtyard to examine their new patients was saddening. But as I met the surgeons, I knew the adorable children were going to be in good hands.
Monday morning rolled around and the OR got off to the normal slow start as we tried to relearn where everything was and what supplies we had available. But as soon as the first cleft patient rolled in, we got down to business. It was amazing to watch how Dr. J and Dr. Liu marked out their incisions on the lip and figured out how they could move tissue around to turn the cleft into a natural looking lip. As we put the final sutures in, I had such a sense of accomplishment as I knew we just helped to change this child's life forever. That feeling continued as the workday moved into the "worknight". Yes, we had late nights in the OR all week, but we were able to touch so many families' lives that the missed sleep was worth it.
I am already counting down the days until I can return to Ayacucho and be back among the people of the Andes that I have grown to love so very much over the past few years. As I was able to tell the director of the hospital at our farewell dinner when he asked who in the group was Peruvian- ¡soy peruana en mi corazón!
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