Binh Thuan is one of the poorest provinces in Vietnam. It isn't a
place where patients can receive the most modern and up-to-date medical care.
"The hospital...was horribly poor and the supplies were horribly out of
date," says Ginger Robinson, speaking about a rural hospital in south-central
Vietnam. "Rats were running in and out of the hospital."
Robinson is a nurse. She and her husband, Randolph Robinson, an oral and
maxillofacial surgeon, run an organization that helps people who live in such
poverty.
Strictly done on volunteer time, the Robinsons organize crews of oral and
maxillofacial surgeons to visit poor countries around the world. They have
visited countries such as Costa Rica, China and Bolivia. On these trips, they
correct facial deformities such as cleft palates and remove cancerous tumors.
Most recently, Robinson and four other team members visited Vietnam. In
addition to visiting Ho Chi Min City, the group traveled south to a more rural
location near the dune-covered beaches of the South China Sea. The crew of
five screened patients. With the help of Vietnamese doctors, they selected
25 patients that they could operate on.
Many of the people, hoping to receive the surgery, boated as far as 37
miles from various islands in the South China Sea.
At the hospital, the Vietnamese doctors and the American doctors operated
at two separate tables in the same operating room. "That way, they could be
there if something went wrong," explains Ginger, who coordinates the missions
from their home base in Colorado.
Over two days, the oral surgeons corrected cleft palates and cleft lips.
Although most of the patients were children, some adults also received surgery.
"Randy saw one woman who came in with her son who had a cleft lip," says Ginger.
"She was a young woman whose husband had died at sea."
But it wasn't just her son who needed help. "She also had a cleft
lip. But she came in only wanting help for her son. She just wanted to do
something for him."
Randy insisted on helping the mother as well. "After some time, she yielded
and they both went home with incisions," says Ginger. "It's deeply rewarding
to be able to help in situations like that."
Time spent volunteering means that the Robinsons earn less of an income
at their surgery practice in Colorado. But Ginger says it's worth every
penny. "You can't put a monetary value on helping so many people," she
says. "We both decided long ago we wanted to do something to help others.
"It isn't always easy, but you are doing something that is life-changing
and in some cases life-saving for people. In the long term, that is much more
important."
Whether working in hospitals around the world or close to home, oral and
maxillofacial surgery is all about helping others. "The work really has an
impact on people's lives," says Benjamin Davis. He is an oral and maxillofacial
surgeon.
"You're working with people who have facial deformities and tumors.
What we do can truly help them feel and look better."
Jack Klatell is a professor and chair of the dentistry department at Mount
Sinai in New York. He agrees. "As with surgery of any sort, there is a rewarding
aspect to it," he says.
"What we do is largely cosmetic and it's exciting to help someone
who may have a cleft palate or who has fractures from a car accident."
If you visit an oral surgeon in North America, you are likely going to
see a male doctor. "We would love to change that," says Marquita Hynes. She
is a communications staff associate at the American Association of Oral and
Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) in Illinois.
"Of course we have more women coming into the field, but there are certainly
still far more men," she says. "It is much like engineering and similar fields.
Women are entering the programs, but there are still far more men. It takes
time for things to change."
Students in high school who are thinking about becoming oral surgeons should
brush up on math and science. However, it isn't always necessary to pursue
the sciences in university. "Generally, those interested have an interest
in math and sciences, but not always," says Hynes.
"This is for those who truly enjoy working with others," says Davis. "You
have to want to help others."