War & Health

The USS Kearsarge has an impressive medical facility onboard, second only to that of a hospital ship. However, the facility was designed to handle the combat casualties of a Marine Expeditionary Unit, not pediatric cleft pallet and cleft lip surgeries. I asked Commander Damstra, who was originally trained as a family physician, how the Kearsarge will handle pediatric surgery cases.

40-60 children are selected for the cleft pallet or cleft lip surgery by Operation Smile’s permanent team in Nicaragua months before the Kearsarge arrives in Puerto Cabezas. Additionally, the Kearsarge has worked with Operation Smile to get the NGO’s specialized pediatric equipment and supplies onboard.

The first day the Kearsarge arrives in Puerto Cabezas, the patients will gather at a local church. From there, they will re-evaluated and told which day they will be going onboard for the surgery, with patients requiring longer follow-up care going first. Each child will have an escort (normally a parent) and both will receive a chest x-ray (to test for TB) before being allowed onboard. Currently the plan is to fly patients onboard the Kearsarge via helicopter.

After the operation, all children will stay overnight (or as long as required) in the ward with their escorts. When the children are ready to disembark, they are given a complete, detailed copy of the medical records so that the children’s local doctor has a clear understanding of the procedure that took place.

In the long term, Operation Smile will conduct follow-ups with all patients one week, six months, and one year after the surgery.