Meet the Israeli Doctors Who Help Children in Peru - Part 4

One of the doctors does it for the message it broadcasts; another joined the mission in order to break the barriers between doctors and patients; and a third doctor is here out of pure humanitarianism. Meet the doctors who are giving Israel the best possible name in the world.

An Israeli, a Cypriot and a Mexican board a plane... No - this is not the beginning of a joke, and Yes - that's exactly what happened just six days ago at Ben-Gurion International Airport outside of Tel Aviv. Thirty hours later, there were four doctors from the Department of Plastic Surgery at the Sheba Medical Center / Tel Hashomer Hospital and one surgical nurse - in Cusco, Peru! They came over to perform surgeries on children that could not be treated by the local surgeons.

These days, when a growing distrust and lack of sympathy for Israel is everywhere, these doctors are the best ambassadors of goodwill Israel could have. When you see the look on the faces of the many people crossing their paths on this journey, when they are told the reason for the doctors' arrival - you can see that these young doctors succeed in all the ways that Israel's Foreign Service personnel fail miserably.

So here is a bit of background on the doctors and surgical nurse who took ten days leave of their private and professional lives, and voluntarily came here to help other people; to help those who could not otherwise get the kind of treatment the Israeli doctors bring along with them.

Dr. Dimtris Stavaro

Age 34, newly married. Born and lives in Nicosia, Cyprus. Dr. Stavaro completed his medical studies in Athens, and then did his residency at the Sheba Medical Center ("I heard from friends of Sheba's extremely high level"). He is working as a doctor in Cyprus and serves as faculty at the New School of Medicine there, working in collaboration with Tel Aviv University and Sheba. Dr. Stavaro looks Israeli for all practical purposes, and speaks fluent Hebrew without any foreign accent.

Why he joined this delegation: "This issue is close to my heart. In the past I took part in similar delegations in Greece, treating victims of earthquakes there. But here, it is a different experience. To arrive at the other side of the world and take care of children is something I have never done before. Since I finished my six years of internship in Israel, I go back there every few months to operate with my friends. When Dr. Winkler asked me to join this delegation, I did not hesitate for a moment and I said yes."

The case that moved him the most: "I know that kids always steal the show and they are always more moving and inspiring, but I was so moved by this 16 year old girl, who came to us with a large scar on her face. When we met her for the first time, she talked to us while all the time hiding the scar with the hand. It was painful for me to see it. We surgically repaired her scars and separated the contractions she had in her face. The surgery was performed under local anesthesia and immediately after surgery we gave her a mirror to see the results. For the first time I saw this girl smile. This moment has made this whole difficult journey worthwhile for me."

Dr. Ariel Tessone

Age 38, married with two daughters and lives in Kfar Shmaryahu. Dr. Tessone completed his medical studies at Tel Aviv University. After six years of specializing at the Department of Plastic Surgery at Sheba, he works as a doctor in the department.

Why he joined this delegation: "Anyone who works in a public hospital in Israel does this due to some sense of mission, especially if your area is plastic surgery - since you can make so much more money outside the public system. So to begin with, even in Israel, I do it out of commitment. This is also the reason I joined this delegation, just as I joined a previous delegation that Dr. Winkler headed to the Congo. I do it because it makes me feel good about myself, and when I see the smile of the child I operated on, or his mother, that is all I need. Moreover, just being out here sends an important message to other doctors and beyond, and it contributes to the values by ​​which I want to raise my own daughters."

The case that moved him the most: "It's easy to go for one of the cleft lip surgeries, but I think, for me, the most moving case was of the boy whose legs were burned. We brought him from being a cripple to a healed person, who in a few weeks when he recovers from his surgery, will walk again. For me this is a great achievement".

Dr. Gil Nardini

Age 39, married with two children ("They do not understand why Daddy is not home right now, despite trying to explain it to them"). A resident of Tel Aviv, Dr. Nardini completed his medical studies at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, graduated in 2004, and this year completed his residency in plastic surgery at Sheba.

Why he joined the delegation: "I was part of a similar delegation organized by Dr. Winkler in the Congo several years ago, after a fuel truck exploded there injuring 250 children. The feeling of that delegation was beyond anything I have experienced before, and therefore I immediately said yes when they asked me to join this time. Working here makes the barrier that exists between doctor and patient to fall. In Israel, I am the doctor, and the patients who come to see me expect to receive a specific treatment, and I provide it. We have a simple doctor-patient relationship. Here everything is mixed together, because they see you as someone who is their savior, and you can see it in their eyes. It is hard to keep your own emotions in check, and the barriers fall away."

The case that moved him the most: "No doubt, it was a child with a cleft lip. The conversation we had with his mother after the surgery moved me tremendously."

Dr. Alejandro Medina

Age 31, single, lives in Kiryat Ono, completed his medical studies at the University of Monterrey, Mexico. Dr. Medina did one year of internship in Houston, Texas and then came to Israel three years ago and is doing his internship in Sheba's plastic surgery department. ("All the doctors I spoke to overseas recommend the department at Sheba").

Why he joined the delegation: "Nothing excites me more than volunteering for society. This is why I went to medical school to study medicine. As soon as I heard about this mission I knew I wanted to be a part of it.

The case that moved him the most: "Cleft lip surgery is quite simple for us. It takes an hour and a half, two hours tops. After the surgery, I met a child's mother when she came to see him. I explained to her in Spanish what we did and how the surgery went. She was so moved. She held my hand and kept on crying. For me it was two hours of work, but for her it was a huge change that affects her own and her son's life."

Leora Bitan

41 year old surgical nurse. Leora has been working at Sheba for 12 years, the last 18 months in plastic surgery. Currently she is completing a Master's degree in nursing and management at Tel Aviv University.

Why she joined the delegation: "This is an opportunity of a lifetime. What we are doing here is 'giving' in its purest form. As a nurse, I am always giving, but here as a volunteer without pay it is different. This comes from the heart. I must say that working here just whet my appetite, and I would love to join similar delegations in the future."

The case that moved her the most: "Without a doubt, it was the boy with burns on his legs that could not walk. We freed his nerves and tendons so that he can move his legs and walk again. For us it's just a trivial action, a surgery that lasts but a few hours, for him, it means to get back the basic ability to walk again".

"The people I chose for this delegation - three medical experts, one intern and a surgical nurse," says Dr. Winkler, head of the delegation, "are precisely the people who would never say no to hard work, not in Israel, and certainly not here. I see them as the future generation of plastic surgery, in Israel. On this trip, where the conditions were constantly harsh, they worked hard and gave it all they had. Yesterday, for example, after a hard day's work at the hospital, they went to the hotel, showered and changed and went out in the evening to the local university here in Cusco to give a lecture on burns to 100 medical students in the local auditorium - all with great spirits and a smile on their faces."

"As a department head, I want to lead and have people follow in my footsteps. I believe that this is the right direction. I try to teach them everything I know, without fear of the world. I am looking for them to become superstars. And when the head of the department is surrounded by good people, he himself becomes better."

"Hospitals in Israel do not offer plastic surgeons attractive compensation. So it is not at all simple to draw my colleagues into such international humanitarian work."