Free surgeries for children with cleft lip and palate deformities in Mekong Delta
By Quoc Hung in HCMC
Operation Smile Vietnam, in partnership with Amway Vietnam, Can Tho General Hospital and other partners, will provide free medical check-ups and surgeries for children born with cleft lip and palate deformities from November 6 to 12.
The patients will also receive a portion of transportation and food expenses incurred during their stay at the 
hospital. The seven-day surgery mission will be held at Can Tho General Hospital, 106 Cach Mang Thang Tam Street, Ninh Kieu District, Can Tho City.
It is estimated that 150 patients will receive treatment during this mission.
Families whose children were born with cleft clip and facial deformities can register for the program with Operation Smile Vietnam at 0904 885 555 or 04 3936 5426 or bring their children to Can Tho General Hospital for a check-up, consultation and surgery.
For safety, surgeries will only be performed for cleft lip patients over six months old and over eight kilograms and for cleft palate patients over 18 months old and over ten kilograms. The program does not accept malnourished children or children with asthma, high fever, diabetes, heart or other internal diseases.
The year 2009 marks twenty years of service of Operation Smile Vietnam. Since its establishment, Operation Smile Vietnam has provided free surgeries to over 13,000 children born with cleft lip and cleft palate. Each surgery takes 45-60 minutes and costs approximately US$150. In the coming years, Operation Smile Vietnam targets to provide free surgeries for 2,500-3,000 children each year to minimize the number of patients suffering from facial deformities. Every year, Vietnam has an estimated 3,000 babies born with cleft lip and/or palate deformities.