Dr. Palladino’s Commitment to Make a Difference in the Lives of Children Takes Him to Cusco, Peru
Posted November 19, 2014 in News
Aside from being a voice for his own community of South Florida, Dr. Humberto Palladino and his team schedule at least one trip each year to offer free surgeries for children in low income countries. These children often come from disadvantaged homes and have moderate to severe birth defects, which can affect their ability to live normally. The surgeries help the parents and families of these children.
On these missionary trips, Dr. Palladino, in conjuction with a team of experts in their area, perform about ten surgeries a day over the course of five consecutive days. Most are cleft lip and palate surgeries, of which they cover approximately fifty surgeries within the week that they are there. His patients can be anywhere between a year old to ten years old.
A few years ago, Dr. Palladino and a Mayo Clinic team visited Vietnam and made a documentary video about the time they spent there. Feel free to watch the video, here.
This year, Dr. Palladino will be in Cusco, Peru, from November 13 – 23, 2014. He will apply his skills to make a difference in the lives of many children while there. The team will operate on as many children as they can to reverse the noticeable birth defects and give these kids a second chance to have a normal life. Without the kindness of these specialists, their families would not be able to afford or go through such an undertaking.
Dr. Palladino travels on these missionary assignments as part of the Smile Network, along with many other volunteers. The team of plastic surgeons, nurses, dentists, surgical techs, hydration specialists, translator and other instrumental personnel all work together to provide life-changing surgeries for families in need. Their weeklong stay is very intense and the staff works non-stop to help as many children as possible while there.
The Smile Network is a non-profit organization, whose humanitarian efforts have given thousands of families the chance to receive much-needed health care services. Since 2003, the majority of recipients include individuals and families from impoverished nations and third-world countries.
Anyone who is interested in donating time or funds to the Smile Network can rest assured that it is one of the best organizations of its kind, spending over 89% of its financial contributions on the program services.
Dr. Palladino is proud to be part of this humanitarian organization, by contributing his time, talents, and resources to make a remarkable difference where it truly counts!