Operation Smile
Operation Smile is a nonprofit medical service organization founded in 1982 by Dr. William P. Magee Jr. and his wife Kathleen (Kathy) S. Magee. It is headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia. In addition to providing cleft lip and palate repair surgeries to children worldwide, Operation Smile works as a non-governmental organization to reduce the occurrence of cleft lips and palates worldwide. It develops ambassadorships to raise awareness of cleft issues; sponsors a world care program for international cases requiring special care, organizes foundations worldwide to assist countries in reaching self-sufficiency with cleft surgeries, hosts a U.S.  care network to assist families in the U.S. with cleft issues, and develops and administers worldwide education programs related to cleft issues, as well as organizes student leadership programs. Operation Smile has provided over 220,000 surgeries for children and young adults born with cleft lips, cleft palates, and other facial deformities in over 60 countries since 1982, at no cost to the recipients. As of 2018, Operation Smile provided on-going care around the world at 34 smile centers. According to its tax report, Operation Smile completed 156 medical missions in 80 sites globally, including 13 sites in extremely poor  regions. During missions, over 35,000 dental procedures were performed in the year 2018. Early History of Operation Smile. Operation Smile was founded by Bill and Kathy Magee (Dr. William P. Magee Jr., D.D.S., M.D. and Kathleen S. Magee, B.S.N., M.Ed., M.S.W.). In 1982 Dr. Magee, a plastic surgeon, and Kathy Magee, who was then a social worker and a nurse, were invited to join a Philippine cleft repair mission with a group of medical volunteers. When they realized that the group would not return to the Philippines though there were many remaining who needed surgery, they established Operation Smile. Dr.  Magee said, The Magee's completed two return trips to Naga City, treating 400 children. The scope of the organization increased after Mother Teresa invited Operation Smile to come to India to treat deformed children. In 1987, Operation Smile launched the Physicians’ Program, which brought doctors from the countries where it hosted medical missions to Norfolk, Virginia, to train with Dr. Magee. That same year Operation Smile completed its First medical mission to Kenya. Within the next two years, Operation Smile received a Presidential Citation for Private Sector Initiatives from President Ronald Reagan, and was adopted as a service project  by the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. In 1995, Operation Smile opened its first care center, offering patients cleft treatments year-round, in Duitama, Colombia. After establishing the Global Headquarters location in Norfolk, VA, Operation Smile began foundations in different countries like Australia, UK, Italy, Vietnam, and Ireland. Programs. Surgical missions. For each mission, Operation Smile verifies the credentials and organizes the participation and travel arrangements for a team of volunteers. The team typically includes a mission site coordinator, plastic surgeons, anesthesiologists, a pediatrician, an intensive care physician, head or coordinating nurse, pre- and post-op nurses, child development  specialists, speech pathologists, dentists and/or orthodontists. During the fiscal year of 2018, Operation Smile hosted 156 medical missions in 80 unique sites around the world and provided free surgical care for over 12,00 children and young adults. Nearly 82% of medical professionals volunteering with Operation Smile were from low and middle income countries. The medical volunteers provided approximately 397,312 hours of free care for Operation Smile's patients. World Care Program. Patients with conditions too serious to treat in their own countries can become World Care patients and come to the United States. On a case by case basis, Operation  Smile will bring severe craniofacial cases to Norfolk, Virginia, and all around the U.S. when mission conditions are inappropriate for the severity of the case. As of June 2007, approximately 200 world care patients had been treated. Foundations. Operation Smile has in-country global foundations that raise money and awareness to support its programs. Mission teams are hosted by international foundations that are responsible for in-country logistics, fund raising and mission awareness. Through partnerships with the American Heart Association, as well as with medical and teaching institutions, healthcare professionals from developing countries receive evidence-based education and hands-on  training and mentoring. Operation smile also has sponsored conferences, seminar workshops, rotation programs, visiting professorships, and short and long term fellowships. To aid countries in becoming self-sufficient at caring for cleft patients, beginning in early 2007 the organization planned to open comprehensive care medical clinics in Colombia, Honduras, Morocco, China, India, the Philippines and Vietnam. The centers provide surgeries and treatment, educate local volunteers, perform local development activities and manage local communications / administrative services. The center in Vietnam expected to treat 2,000 patients annually and to train about 1,000 medical professionals. As of 2018, Operation Smile now offers over  30 comprehensive care clinics around the world. Education. The annual Operation Smile Physicians' Training Program (PTP) brings surgeons from around the world to the United States for training in specialized surgical skills. The program has helped train more than 650 international physicians in advanced craniofacial techniques. Operation Smile has hosted two global summits on medical standards in Norfolk, Virginia. Operation Smile attempts to hold yearly summits to offer medical training and advancement for medical workers around the globe. In 2017, they partnered with St. Luke's Medical Center in the Philippines to offer medically-focused skills workshops to its participants . Student programs. Operation Smile student programs encourages students to lead clubs and raise awareness of health in other countries. Operation Smile engages students from around the world through an annual International Student Leadership Conference (ISLC) which convenes high school freshmen, sophomores and juniors who want to make a difference in global health. The International Student Leadership Conference (ISLC) is a big aspect of the Operation Smile student programs. Once every year, 500-700 students from around the world meet to discuss the world's issues and how to solve them with a specific focus on medical care equity. In 2018 , the ISLC that took place in Seattle, WA included more than 300 students from across the globe, including China, Vietnam, Ireland, Panama, South Africa and Canada that learned how to advocate for children born with a cleft lip, cleft palate or other facial deformity. During the conference, students also learned about global health, joined in peer-to-peer leadership training and participated in service projects to benefit Operation Smile patients, as well as staff at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Operation Smile offers students the opportunity to qualify to travel internationally. Before the students go on a mission, they must apply  and be selected to attend one of two annual Mission Training Workshops (MTW). The workshops cover four health modules: dental hygiene, oral re-hydration therapy, nutrition, and burn care and prevention. Students make posters for each of these modules and present them on the missions, educating families on simple life-safety principles. At OpSmile headquarters, students train as mission ambassadors in developing countries. On training completion, students may be selected for an international mission. Global Essential Surgery Initiatives. In rural northeastern Nicaragua, work is underway through a pilot project called Cirugía para el Pueblo – “Surgery for the People.” Operation Smile  and the Ministry of Health seek to improve the surgical infrastructure of the hospitals and to spread awareness about surgically-treatable conditions to the people of the region. Operation Smile offers education in safe surgical conditions in Ethiopia and Rwanda, where they have offered surgical training rotations for general surgeons to learn reconstructive plastic surgery techniques — since 2012 in Ethiopia and since 2015 in Rwanda. The two-week training courses for Ethiopian surgeons, anesthesiologists and nurses take place at JUSH (Jimma University Specialized Hospital), the only hospital serving the 15 million-plus people living in Ethiopia’s southwestern region. The  rotations cover cleft surgery as well as techniques to better heal burn, trauma and surgical wounds, representing the bulk of the hospital’s plastic surgery cases. Starting in 2015, Operation Smile partnered with the University of Rwanda, Partners In Health and the Rwandan Ministry of Health to host twice-annual surgical training rotations. Since then, 17 Rwandan general surgery residents have received hands-on training and education through the rotations. Operation Smile has also worked to improve the skills of local anesthesiologists. Through a grant secured by Operation Smile Sweden through the Swedish Postcode Lottery, Operation Smile will help establish  the country’s first-ever postgraduate reconstructive plastic surgery certification program in partnership with the University of Rwanda and Rwanda’s ministries of education and health. The program is scheduled to begin in September 2019 with its first graduates receiving certifications in 2022. On April 2, 2019 in the Vietnam Ministry of Health hosted a conference on patient safety and surgical safety that involved Operation Smile's participation. The achievement of collaboration between the Medical Services Administration of Vietnam MoH and Operation Smile comes after a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2014 with a goal to increase access to  quality standards for safe surgery in Vietnam. During the recent conference, Operation Smile worked with the MoH, World Health Organization, and other organizations, to implement the set of eight Quality Standards for Safe Surgery. The project started with the assessment of current surgical capacity in the country and included hospitals representing all socio-economic zones in Vietnam. The assessment results served as the baseline information for specialists to develop appropriate and feasible safe surgery standards for Vietnam. The drafting team used WHOs' document "Safe Surgery Saves Lives," as well as Operation Smile's Global Standards of Care as references for  development of the Standards. The adoption of Safe Surgery Standards will have potential to impact three million surgeries annually throughout Vietnam. Awards and milestones. In 1996, Operation Smile was the first recipient of the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize. In 1997, Dr. Bill Magee and Kathy Magee receive the Servitor Pacis Award from The Path to Peace Foundation. In 1999, Kathleen Magee was awarded the World of Children Award for her contributions to helping vulnerable children through her efforts with Operation Smile. Dr. Magee received the 2001 Antonio Feltrinelli Prize ("Premi "Antonio Feltrinelli"") awarded by the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei , which represents the National Academy of Science in Italy, for Exceptional Endeavors of Outstanding Moral and Humanitarian Value. Dr. Magee presented the Honorary Kazanjian Lecture to the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, and in 1998 received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Kathleen Magee received the 1997 Servants of Peace Award from the U.N. Representative to the Vatican. 1999-2002: Criticism and response. In November 1999, specific patient deaths brought criticism on Operation Smile's medical procedures, suggesting the organization prioritized publicity and volume over patient welfare and safety. In response, Operation Smile  conducted an internal review. Initially, the organization "promised to make public the full findings of the review", though later chose not to release the findings, considering the review an internal matter. Several directors disagreed with this choice and left the board. Four months after announcing the review, the organization publicly acknowledged organizational flaws. By 2002, the organization also established medical credential standards, improved medical monitoring of patients, and implemented quality and financial controls. Operation Smile and Smile Train. In early 2011, Smile Train and Operation Smile announced the two charities would merge, followed three weeks later by announcements the merger  had been aborted, Smile Train having canceled the union. Smile Train's board also named Priscilla Ma the executive director of the organization, while other board members and directors stepped down. Following the failed merger, Operation Smile "spun-off" the Operation Smile Foundation. The Foundation was renamed Stop Cleft International, a 501(c)3 organization. Stop Cleft International became a subsidiary of Smile Train in July, 2013. Operation Smile paid an agreed upon obligation of $4,000,000 to Stop Cleft International/Smile Train during tax year 2013. In 2009, Smile Train initiated an advertising campaign in the Richmond Times highlighting Smile Train 's attempts between 2006 and 2009 to donate nearly $9 million to Operation Smile, the organization Brian Mullaney had split from in 1998 in what Mullaney described as a "messy divorce." In the ad, Mullaney contended Operation Smile was refusing money that could benefit children, later calling the situation "shameful"; Mullaney also noted that he respects that in some countries need overwhelms available doctors and he had "a newfound respect for what Operation Smile does." The "Virginian Pilot" outlined the history and differences between the two organizations and indicated Mullaney wanted the two organizations to reconcile. At the time , Dr. Magee of Operation Smile declined a newspaper interview, and Operation Smile formally responded to the ad campaign, saying the two organizations "have different operating philosophies and business ethics," and that Operation Smile would continue foregoing donations from an "unproductive relationship." Headquarters relocation. In 2007, Operation Smile announced relocation of its headquarters from Norfolk, Virginia to a new building in Virginia Beach.