Three plastic surgeons from the AICEP non-profit organisation, Marco Stabile, Gianluca Alessandro Gatti, and Alessandro Giacomina, were presented to the Paraguayan press by the Italian Embassy for their pro bono work under the “Nemyatyro Paraguay” reconstructive surgery project. Developed by Paraguay’s Health Ministry through the national Burn Centre Unit headed by Paraguayan surgeon of Italian origins Dr. Bruno Balmelli, the project has led to more than 1,100 free surgeries in various Paraguayan cities over the last year, aiding patients in severe condition who lack sufficient economic resources to obtain treatment.
“Nemyatyro Paraguay” project
The group Italian doctors has recently been joined by French plastic surgeon Dr Roland Boileau. The Italian-French team will operate from January 26 to February 7 to perform over 280 reconstructive surgeries completely free of charge, offering the poorest segments of the population a chance to receive treatment without having to travel to the capital – an almost impossible journey for many of the patients. The programme provides for three highly advanced surgeries – which were already carried out last week – at the Centro Nacional del Quemado, 100 operations at the hospital in Ñemby, and 180 operations at three hospitals in the 8th Health Region of the Misiones Department. The main beneficiaries will be children, the elderly and persons with particularly severe ailments – such as burns, congenital malformations of the hands and feet, cleft lip and palate, skin cancer, and pathological scars – for whom reconstructive surgery will mean starting a new life.