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West Bank : May 2007 and Dec 2007 Dr. John Van Aalst, MD is the Director of Pediatric & Craniofacial Suregery at the University of North Carolina. He has started a program for the West Bank to train local surgeons in cleft palate and cleft lip repair. During the May 2007 trip twenty-eight surgerys were performed and four local surgeons received training. The Palestinian Children's Relief Fund (PCRF LINK)  has been instrumental in funding the effort and has done a marvelous job in coordinating with Thabet Thabet hospital in Tulkarem. This program is free to the participants.  In December, the first Cleft Medical Society meeting was held in Ramallah and was attended by over 100 interested West Bank physicians of all specialties. Speakers included physicians from Doctors Without Borders, Dr Van Aaalst and Dr Herring of CMI and other international physicians. The conference emphasized the need for a coordinated multi-disciplinarian approach. This child probably suffers from Apert syndrome. She had severely deformed hands which required some surgery. Each patient is photographed for thorough documentation and surgical evaluation. This previous cleft lip repair requires revision. This child's nose was deformed at birth by prolonged nasal intubation. Hands of Light..... Pat Davison, Pulizer Prize winning photographer, joined us on two trips. BEFORE AND AFTER >