On February 1st we returned from another successful and heartwarming surgical mission trip to
The Moore Center in Guatemala City!
This year we did things a little different. Our work started last March when a group of dedicated physicians traveled to Guatemala City to offer an educational conference for local physicians and residents. As part of that course, patients with complex pediatric orthopedic conditions were evaluated at The Moore Center. Many of these children required surgery, so the wheels started turning for bringing the surgeons back to perform the surgeries that had been recommended. The doctors all volunteered to be part of the January 2025 Operation KidDocs surgical mission trip.
I would like to start out by thanking Dr. John Williams, Dr. Jay Shapiro, Dr. Paul Urbanek, Dr. Rick Schwend, Dr. Michelle Mo and Dr Norman Ramirez-Lluch. These friends and colleagues each contributed a career’s worth of surgical experience, and their talent was matched only by their kindness towards each other and our patients. We had the pleasure of welcoming new surgeons to our team, with rising star Dr. Michelle Mo, still in her early career, inspiring all her colleagues with her technical expertise, passion for global health, and genuine friendship.
I would like to thank our Anesthesia team: Dr. Patman, Dr Brandt, Carrie Comeaux CRNA, Donna Urbanek CRNA, and Anne LeBlanc CRNA. Every day parents handed their babies to these providers before surgery, trusting them with their most precious family members. I cannot think of a group of people more worthy. Thank you for keeping our team and our patients so safe and comfortable.
Our surgical rooms were run by Carissa Farwell RN, Hannah Wright RN, and Sara French RN. These women are fantastic. Not only are they exceptional at their jobs, they are the people you come to work hoping to see. Thank you for being the glue of our team.
We can’t do surgery without our tools. Keeping track of instruments being used by six surgeons in three different rooms running concurrently is a Tetris nightmare for anyone. Thank you to Beatina Crockett for running sterile processing like an octopus. Echo Rowles CSFA, Carmen Del Real CST, and Alec Lewis CST were our surgical technicians, passing instruments and assisting with surgeries. This is an unbelievably difficult role and they did it with grace and humility.
Returning champions Tanya Gomez RN and Braulio Vazquez RN were joined by Gerardo Tellez RN and Stephanie Bosse RN in the post-operative recovery room. Each child woke up safe and pain free because of these nurses. Their uplifting personalities and big laughter made their area the place to be when we needed a break. Thank you for the reprieve.
Momma Jeannette Williams returned to provide comfort to patients, patient families, and weary healthcare providers alike. The ease with which she shares love and compassion is the embodiment of the work that we do.
Ninette Sokhon is a pre-medical honors undergraduate student from the University of Texas. She has helped fund raise for our missions as a member of AED and was elected by her peers to represent their organization on our trip. We see why! Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm and light.
And finally, Lindsay Rogers, RN took on the herculean task of Team Lead. She spent the trip putting out fires before anyone had the chance to know they had started. She did a little bit of everything to make the mission run as smooth as possible. She is a huge reason why person after person noted that this was our best trip yet. Thank you so very much Lindsay.
We are a non-profit organization run by volunteers who never take any form of compensation. That means that all donations go directly towards running missions like this one. Without you, our donors and our Operation KidDocs community, this would not be possible. Thank you for your ongoing support. I hope you were able to keep up with our live updates via Instagram. If you missed it, feel free to visit us here to review our posts.