4,300 children with cleft palate benefit from SK Group’s initiative

Doctors at a surgery to bring smiles to children with cleft lip and cleft palate. To date, over 4,300 Vietnamese children with cleft lip and cleft palate have benefited from SK Group’s social contribution initiative called “Smile for Children”. – Photo Courtesy of SK Group

Nearly 4,300 Vietnamese children with cleft lip and cleft palate have benefited from SK Group’s social contribution initiative called “Smile for Children” over the past 27 years.

With a dedicated focus on providing facial reconstruction for children with facial deformities, “Smile for Children” has dedicated a total of 4 billion Korean won (US$3 million) to support children with cleft lip and cleft palate, where early surgical intervention is especially crucial because these congenital abnormalities not only affect physical growth and respiration but also a child’s social development, including speech, appearance, and self-confidence.

Recently, SK Group collaborated with Seoul National University Bundang Hospital and Operation Smile Vietnam to organise a free surgery programme for Vietnamese children with facial deformities in Quang Ngai Province.

This programme, part of SK Group’s social contribution initiative called “Smile for Children,” has been bringing happiness to families and contributing to South Korea and Viet Nam’s healthcare cooperation since 1996.

The annual free surgery programme for Vietnamese children with facial deformities has been expanding its reach across Viet Nam, providing medical support to those in need of facial reconstruction.

Beyond bringing happiness to the children and their families, the programme plays a significant role in strengthening the healthcare co-operation between South Korea and Viet Nam through the exchange of medical experience between the two teams.

South Korea has also generously provided innovative medical equipment and technology, encouraging and supporting Vietnamese hospitals and their resources to offer postoperative care and perform local surgeries.

This year, the programme was made possible by a dedicated team of 26 members from South Korea, including the chairman of Operation Smile, Professor Rong-min Baek of the Plastic Surgery Department at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, a medical team consisting of doctors from Viet Nam and South Korea, as well as members of the student volunteer committee “SK Sunny.”

Together, they carried out the programme for six days, successfully completing surgeries for 116 children in Viet Nam with facial deformities. — VNS