The trip is important because, after the reign of the Khmer Rouge and Cambodian genocide from 1975-1979, only twenty-nine physicians survived to serve the entire country. Cambodia was not only left with a generational void of physicians to take care of their people but also to train future physicians. Our goal is to help bridge this gap by providing health care for those who suffer from facial deformities caused by congenital anomalies, cancer, or trauma and to educate Cambodian medical students, residents, and surgeons in order to sustain the care we provide for the short period of time we are there. In addition to providing lectures to the Cambodian medical students and residents that focus on facial reconstructive surgery, the Cambodian surgeons and trainees operate with us, with the goal of them gaining the skill to perform these procedures independently as we continue to return on a yearly basis.
But the scope of impact is not limited to the people of Cambodia. One could argue that just as much of an impact, if not more, is made on the individuals who serve on the trip. The trip is a reminder of why all of us chose medicine as a profession, that each of us can make a difference, and that a life serving others is a life worth living.