Corrective surgery brings smiles to kids’ faces

BY STEPHANIE GENUARDI
sgenuardi@MiamiHerald.com

ALLISON DIAZ / FREELANCE

Lucinda Long, 6, had surgery on the scar on her forehead.

“We still have people come up to us and say, `Oh my God, what happened to your head?’ ” said Lucy’s mother, Andrea, who suffered a broken collarbone in the same crash.

But early Saturday morning, at Baptist Children’s Hospital, Lucy was one of 13 South Florida children who showed up for life-changing plastic surgery, as part of the hospital’s ninth annual “Day of Smiles” program.

Each of the children had congenital facial deformities, burns, or scars. Baptist gave them free corrective cosmetic surgery.

Since the program began in 1999, Baptist has treated 97 patients as part of the project.

“We just love this stuff. It’s fun,” said Dr. Joel Levin, chief of plastic surgery at Baptist Hospital. “At the end of the day, we have a beautiful little child to give back to their parents. The surgery is life-changing. You get immediate gratification.”

Just one procedure could cost up to $25,000, Levin estimates. But Saturday, the hospital absorbed the costs.

Plus, the staff who showed up Saturday volunteered their time, said hospital spokesperson Phyllis Teitelbaum.

“I like this,” Teitelbaum said, looking around admiring the chaotic, bustling prep room.

“It’s so uplifting.”

A friend told Skip and Andrea Long about the Baptist program. They were excited, but didn’t think they’d make the cut.

“Other kids situations are a lot more dire,” Skip Long said. “We were thinking it was a long shot.”

Plus, Long said he had been out of work for the past year.

“Financially, we were thinking there was no way we would be able to do this,” he said.

“But when this came along, she said to me, `Daddy, no one else will look at the scar.’ ”

Lucy’s plastic surgeon was Dr. Jhonny Salomon, who met his patient in the prep room. He has been involved with the “Day of Smiles” program since its inception.

The scar corrective procedure would not be difficult and recovery would take about a month, he said.

Asked why he chose to donate his time, he responded,

“In one or two hours, you can change someone’s life, their overall happiness.”

Nicholas Cuervo, 19, of Weston, is hoping for a change with Saturday’s corrective procedure. He has undergone nine surgeries to correct deformities from a cleft lip and palate, a birth defect that produces a gap between the upper lip and nose, making eating and speaking difficult.

He was hoping Saturday’s surgery — revision of his lip scars and reshaping of his nose — would be his last.

“We don’t have words to say how thankful we are. We appreciate all that they are doing for us,” said Nicholas’s father, Alberto.

Nicholas has been in the program for three years, and “every time he comes here, he comes with joy,” said his father. Nicholas said the surgeries are “very helpful” and enable him to “feel more confident.”

The Baptist doctors tackle all kinds of medical challenges.

For the past 11 years, plastic surgeon Dr. John Cassel has been treating 14-year-old Mariya Klymenko, who suffered extensive burns from scalding water as an infant in her native Ukraine.

“It was amazing she survived,” Cassel said.

An organization in Sweden contacted him, asking if he could care for Maria.

“I was thinking anyone that can survive these burns deserves every chance.”

Maria arrived in the United States at age 3, and Cassel has performed nine to 10 operations on her.

Saturday, he was fixing a scar on her arm and continuing corrective surgery on the skin grafts of her face.

Maria and her mother have now moved to Miami.

Her mother works in the hospital’s cafeteria, and Maria is at a public school speaking perfect English, said Cassel.

Each Father’s Day, Maria gives him a card and comes to his office to sing “Happy Birthday.”

“I know you’re not supposed to fall in love with a patient,” he said, with a wide grin, “but I couldn’t help myself.”