12 March 2026 – Thursday – Final day of surgery

As usual, our transportation to the hospital was at 7am. The cases today seemed to be short. But our second patient who was having a 2nd stage operation, didn’t seem to have a “banked” piece of cartilage from his initial surgery. The banked piece left in the initial incision from the rib is used to hold the ear forward once it is lifted up. We needed to  take another piece of rib. Scott, our surgeon, discussed it with the mother. She was agreeable to a slightly bigger surgery to get the ear fixed. So our case was a bit longer than originally planned. In any case we finished in time to eat lunch and return to the OR to pack up unused supplies that need to be returned for the next mission  as well as instruments that need to be sterilized and repacked. We try to keep things organized so that the repacking that takes place in Rochester NY, the home base for HUGS, is not too crazy. 

The best part of the mission is clinic. All the patients we have cared for are assembled for a post operative check of their surgical site. It is incredible to see all the kids together in their hospital pajamas acting like kids. One of the major benefits of this surgery is for the children who come from all over Vietnam to see other children who have the same ear problem. Suddenly they aren’t freaks. Also the parents want to thank us for changing their lives and their families. Some people can speak English but Google translate allows us to interact. It’s very touching to feel the gratitude for what we do. One of the mothers passed out gift silk wallets to each of us. Then another mother gave us tote bags. Finally the surgeons gave us each a beautiful heavy silk table runner. Packing will be a challenge! 

After many hugs and photos we left the hospital to return to the hotel to get ready for our group dinner with the Vietnamese staff. As usual we went to a restaurant that has an enormous buffet of fish, soup, meat, salad, fruit and all sort of things that I don’t recognize. 

After dinner we went in various directions. I had a drink with the anesthesia team in a tiny rooftop bar that was close enough to our hotel that I walked home while the others stayed much later. The streets around our hotel are well lit and busy so I felt safe. People are outside eating or hanging out well into the night.