ReSurge International Blog

Improving Cleft Care in Thailand

We are thrilled to announce that our first Visiting Educator (VE) workshop in Thailand is in progress!

Cleft surgery experts Dr. Jeff Marsh and Dr. Lun-Jou Lo are in Thailand conducting a one-week training in collaboration with local doctors from Khon Kaen University to improve cleft care in rural Thailand.

By furthering the training of local doctors, it is our hope that there will be a continued focus on educational efforts in rural areas such as Buri Ram in Northern Thailand that will bring high-quality cleft treatment to those in need. 

“As always, Thai hospitality and joviality are warm and generous with new and old friends. Most positive for cleft care is a young generation of plastic surgeons with exposure to U.S. cleft care and enthusiasm for public service. I anticipate a positive sustained future for this project,” shared Dr. Marsh from Thailand via email.

A special thank you goes to our board member, Francis Lee, who put us in touch with Thailand’s famous health activist, Khun Mechai Viravaidya, who helped make this workshop a reality.

“Healing wounds, one tattoo at a time”

When Basma was two years old she suffered a terrible burn injury. Unlike some of our patients, Basma received the surgical care she needed to save her vision and her face. Despite that, Basma’s scars continued to haunt her.

“After 16 years of constant surgeries and pain, nothing can compare to the pain of people's stares and comments. Imagine going through so many surgeries, then meeting someone and the first thing they say is: What happened to your face? Have you tried surgery?” she said.

Finally, Basma found a way to use a tattoo machine to smooth out her scars and hide their appearance, a discovery that would change her life. Today, Basma uses this technique to help other burn survivors.
CNN Health with Sanjay Gupta recently interviewed Basma.  You can watch her inspiring interview here.

“Everyone has a challenge in life and that was mine.  I want people to be inspired by my story and never give up, no matter what happens,” she concluded.

Giving Tuesday!

There is Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and now there is Giving Tuesday!

#GivingTuesday™ is a campaign to create a national day of giving at the start of the annual holiday season. It celebrates and encourages charitable activities that support nonprofit organizations.

Please consider giving today and join a growing movement to give back and celebrate the great tradition of generosity: http://bit.ly/resurgedonate

Notable Efforts to End Violence Against Women

According to UN Women “seven in ten women are targeted for physical and or sexual violence in their lifetime and 603 million women live in countries where domestic violence is still not considered a crime.” With these staggering rates, ReSurge welcomes the news of recent efforts to help put an end to violence against women.  

The United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence against Women announced it would be providing more than $8 million in grants to 12 local initiatives in 18 countries. For the first time the fund received significant support from Africa, Latin America and the Arab States region, a testament to the growing mobilization to address violence against women globally.

Additionally, on November 25, the Center for Women’s Global Leadership at Rutgers University began its 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign in an effort to end gender-based violence and appeal to governments to respond, protect and prevent violence against women.  Numerous organizations have planned events including Africa Women’s Development Fund, UN Women, Women for a Change Buea and Women’s International League of Peace and Freedom. To join the campaign, click here.

In our documentary Postcards from Heaven, we follow the lives of a few courageous women who survived gender-based violence and its effects. We invite you to watch the short film and learn about their lives. 

As a reconstructive surgery organization, our role in these situations is to provide treatment for the women who survive these terrible acts, to restore their mobility and, hopefully, to give them a chance for another life. It is our greater hope that one day, these acts of violence come to an end and that we will never again have patients arriving to our operating table due to these circumstances. Until then, we applaud the efforts being made to address violence against women while we continue to offer our services to the women who need it the most.

Photo by Phil Borges.

ReSurge Celebrates its Fifth Annual Transformations Gala

Left to right: Marion McGovern, ReSurge board vice chair; Hien Thi Nguyen, ReSurge partner in Vietnam; and Dr. William McClure, ReSurge volunteer and awardee. 

On November 3, ReSurge was thrilled to host its fifth annual Transformations Gala at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco. Nearly 400 guests were in attendance to support ReSurge’s life-changing surgeries around the world.

Returning to the stage were celebrities Adam Curry and Micky Hoogendik-Curry, who once again charmed the audience as they hosted the event’s program.

During the gala, ReSurge presented three awards to: Dr. William McClure of Napa, California; Dr. Jorge Palacios of Guayaquil, Ecuador; and Barco’s Nightingales Foundation for their leadership and contributions. (You may view the videos the audience watched on each honoree by clicking on their names above).

This year, the event successfully raised more than $650,000 for surgeries for the poor around the world!

ReSurge would like to thank everyone who attended our gala this year for their generosity and commitment to helping secure access to care to those who need it most, on behalf of ReSurge and its patients—Thank You!

For photos of the event, please visit the following website: http://bit.ly/gala_2012

Photo by Drew Altizer.