Screening Day!

August 22^nd, 2013

Day Two: Bhubaneswar, India

      Today was the first official day of the mission and we are off to a great start! 99 patients were screened today and more patients are expected to come throughout surgery week.

Screening day is very busy, for both the patients and the volunteers. When patients arrive, they wait to be assigned a number, and then when their number is called they begin the process at medical records. During screening, the patients are weighed, have their pictures taken (from multiple angles to best show the lip and palate), have their vitals taken, and then meet and are examined by the anesthesiologists, plastic surgeons, pediatricians, dentists, and speech therapists. If all of the doctors cleared the patient for potential surgery, then they continued to have lab work done.

Medical Records

Waiting for Labs

Taking vitals

Weigh Station

      For many patients and their families the screening process is the first time they have seen a doctor or nurse and it can an intimidating process.  As the various medical professionals worked hard at their stations the student team went to work playing with the children and helping them feel more comfortable in their new environment.

     It never ceases to amaze me that bubbles, coloring books, and balls have the power to transcend the strong language and cultural barriers between the patients and volunteers. Blowing bubbles incites instantaneous joy that spreads quickly across a child’s face, which is followed by peals of laughter and intense bubble popping. Children who have never been perceived as normal find new friends in screening who look like them; something they have never experienced before.  Shy children in the morning open up and become gregarious and fun loving by the afternoon. Smiles, laughter and fun are limitless amidst the hectic screening process.

       Monday’s patients were selected and placed on the surgery schedule but the final list of patients receiving surgery has not yet been announced.  I remember vividly the power of surgery week; patients transformed before our very eyes. Next week Operation Smile will provide the reconstructive surgery the patients need and will change their lives and their parents’ lives forever. Today was incredible and I cannot wait for surgery week!