Facing a Brighter Future
The Nepal plasic surgery team—coordinated by Dr Charles and Margaret Shape, in collaboration with Sydney Adventist Hospital (SAH) and Adventist Development Relief Agency (ADRA), celebrated the tenth year of cleft lip and palate restoration work in Nepal with the visit of 32-person team in 2003. Here is one story.
Tenjeing Sherpa and his wife Nima Lamu live in the village of Marmin in the district of Sindhupalckok, home to some 1400 people, in the Himalayas, three hours walk from the Tibetan border. It snows much of the year, and the terrain is very steep. They keep a herd of 16 yak, which they milk, growing food enough for only six months of the year.
Their village has no running water—it comes from a spring and a nearby river. There’s no electricity; the primary school has only three grades and the nearest secondary school is three hours walk away; The nearest medical post is a day’s walk and the nearest hospital is the Sheer Memorial Adventist Hospital, at Banepa, four hours walk followed by a three-hour bus ride.
The two youngest of Tenjeing and Nima’s children, three-year-old Young Dolma and seven-month-old Pasang, were born with cleft lips. The two older boys, aged 12 and nine, don’t have palate defects.
When Young was born, her parents were very unhappy. No other children in the village had a cleft lip or palate. The family knew about cleft lip and palates because Tenjeing’s sister had a daughter with a cleft defect. However, they didn’t know that they could be repaired.
They didn’t like to show Pasang’s face, and when they were outside, Nima carried him in a basket on her back with his face covered. But by this time, the family had heard that cleft lips could be repaired, as Tenjeing’s niece had her cleft defect repaired at the Banepa ADRA Medical Center.
Arrangements were now made for the family to come to Banepa for surgery by the Australian team. As the family travelled to Banepa, people often asked what had happened to Young’s face, which further distressed Nima.
The children were quite small for their age. Young, as a three-year-old, weighed only six kilograms, and at seven months Pasang weighed just four kilograms (including his blanket!).
The surgery was successful and Young, a delightfully friendly little girl, endeared herself to everyone. Tenjeing and Nima are very grateful to the Australian team and the people who made it possible.
Each year such a volunteer team goes to Nepal. It costs approximately $A350 per patient to perform the cleft lip and palate restoration surgery, and via ADRA you can make a tax-deductible donation. The smiles are worth it.
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