Letter to the Editor
A Step Forward for Charity Surgical Mission: Combination with Music Consolation and Education for Children with Deformities to Promote the Care for the Disadvantaged Group
Wei-yin Chen1, Hung-chi Chen2*, Pedro Ciudad3, Kidakorn Kiranandawat3, Fabio Nicoli3 and
Ram Cilgar3
1Department of International Medical Service Center, China Medical University Hospital, Taiwan
2Department of International Medical Service Center and Plastic Surgery, China Medical University Hospital,
Taiwan
3Department of Reconstructive Microsurgery, China Medical University Hospital, Taiwan
*Corresponding author: Hung-chi Chen, Department of Plastic Surgery, China Medical University Hospital, Taiwan
Published: 29 Mar, 2018
Cite this article as: Chen W-Y, Chen H-C, Ciudad P,
Kiranandawat K, Nicoli F, Cilgar R.
A Step Forward for Charity Surgical
Mission: Combination with Music
Consolation and Education for Children
with Deformities to Promote the Care
for the Disadvantaged Group. Clin
Surg. 2018; 3: 1951.
Keywords
Charity surgical mission; Hand deformities; Music; Disadvantaged social group
Letter to the Editor
Nowadays the most striking and widely accepted concepts emerging in the world are
environmental protection and charity. Comparing with last century, today people on the earth are
more closely related and no one can live without being affected by other parts of the world. Sharing
the responsibility to maintain a clear global environment and helping the poor people to survive
better have become very important issues now [1-3].
Charity surgery mission has been practiced since decades ago. It aims to provide surgical
procedures to help the poor victims in the third world countries, notably the cleft lip and palate,
hand deformities and other procedures which do not need complex postoperative care have been
practiced in the past years.
Recently we have developed a new approach to help the handicapped [1]. A more effective plan
to improve the postoperative care by training the doctors in the target country, so that they can
give continuous postoperative care including physiotherapy and minor revision surgeries after the
surgical team leaves [2]. Because of this a more complex surgery can be done by the surgical team to
achieve better results, such as microsurgical reconstruction [3]. On the other hand other associated
activities such as a concert can be held to provide consolation for these sick children, as well as
offering a master class by a famous pianist from US (Weiyin Chen) for young children leaning
piano in the nearby towns. We might not be able to cure completely the deformities with a single
operation, but the patients ‘soul and psychological problems start to be addressed. Of course they
might need subsequent revision surgeries, which can be done by the trained local doctor or our
surgical team in the next visits.
Under the arrangement by Give-me-Five Charity Organization, our charity trip to a village
nearby Aurangabad in India had been planned many years ago. A plastic surgeon in India was
trained by our hospital for one year regarding advanced reconstructive microsurgery. In the 4 days
of our charity mission we operated for 42 children with hand contractures due to burn injury, as well
as 2 cases of extremity lymph edema using reconstructive micro surgery. At the end of the program
a concert was held for these children, and they were cheered up so much that we were moved. The
trip was characterized by the following features: (1) more advanced surgery such as microsurgery
could be done when a trained local doctor could take continuous care after surgery. (2) Better results
with physiotherapy by the local hospital could be expected. (3) It was a combination of charity
surgery and music. Surgery is for healing of body and music is for healing of soul. It highlights the
concern for mental health of the young patients, not just physical health. It appeals to the attention
to them for consolation of their mind with encouragement for positive thinking in the future. This
is a good start of more considerate surgical mission, which can be further improved in the future.
References
- Dupuis CC. Humanitarian missions in the third world: A polite dissent. Plast Reconstr. Surg. 2004;113(1):433-5.
- Wolf berg AJ. Volunteering overseas-Lessons from surgical blades. New Eng J Med. 2006;354:443-5.
- Chen HC, Salgado CJ, Mardini S, Fangs GM. Humanitarian rescue medical action for patient with advanced lower extremity lymph edema. Lymphology. 2008;41(2):93-5.