NEWS

Meet the January 2012 FACES Surgical Team

A team of 23-members will be heading to northern Peru for the 2012 surgical trip. The team is made of up of a group of talented surgeons, specialists, anesthesiologists, nurses, coordinators and interpreters. Read about each team member below:

Dr. Thomas Albert - El Presidente

Dr. Tom Albert is a professor at Oregon Health Sciences University in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery as well as Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery in Portland, Oregon. Dr. Albert was involved in an extensive medical education effort concerning cleft care with Project Hope in China from 1983-1993 and has continued to be involved independently since then. His interest has been to develop ways to extend truly comprehensive cleft care beyond surgery alone to diffcult to reach populations.

Dr. Dana Smith - Surgeon/Surgical Coordinator/Interpreter
Dana is a Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeon who is currently Director of the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Cleft Palate Clinic in Portland, OR. He is an Otolaryngologist at Kaiser and an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology at OHSU. Dana's wife is a medical student at OHSU; he has a 15-year-old stepson and a 5-year- old daughter. Hobbies include skiing, hiking, rock-climbing and travel. Dr. Smith has been to Peru five times for cleft surgery trips and to Russia once for a facial reconstructive surgery trip.

Dr. Tom Wang - Surgeon
Dr. Wang's practice is centered around cosmetic and reconstructive surgery of the face. He is actively involved in teaching medical students and residents, and participates in research on Facial Plastic Surgery-related problems. His main areas of interest in facial cosmetic surgery are rhinoplasty and facial rejuvenation, including endoscopic facial procedures. In his free time Dr. Wang enjoys traveling, skiing and chamber music.

Dr. Gerald Tanner - Anesthesiologist

Dr. Kristina Ruybalid - Anesthesiologist

Dr. Lisa Morris - Surgeon (Resident)/Co-Surgical Coordinator/Interpreter
Dr. Lisa Morris earned her undergraduate degree at Kansas State University with a major in International Business and Marketing and a minor in Spanish and went to medical school at the University of Kansas. She is currently in her fifth year of residency for Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery at Oregon Health Science University in Portland, OR. Lisa will be heading to Syracuse, New York next year for a Fellowship in Craniofacial / Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Dr Morris has a passion for humanitarian and medical mission work and has been on five previous mission trips and spent time working with physicians in Ecuador, Honduras and South Africa during her medical training.

Dr. Jessyka LighthallSurgeon (Resident)
Jessyka Lighthall is a resident in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Oregon Health & Science University. She plans on pursuing fellowship training in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery with an interest in the care of patients with congenital anomalies, including cleft lip and palate. She would like to continue to be involved with international surgical mission trips throughout her career.

Dr. Adam Terella - Surgeon (Fellow)
Adam is a fellow in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery at OHSU and this will be his first mission trip. He recently completed his residency in Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at the University of Colorado, Denver. Following completion of medical school at Boston University School of Medicine, he recently completed his residency in Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at the University of Colorado, Denver. Adam has a wife, Tara, and 3-year-old daughter, Ava.

Lance Tsugawa - Speech Therapist/Interpreter

Lance earned degrees in Business from the University of Oregon and the Netherlands Institute for International Affairs, and a Masters in Speech and Language Pathology from Portland State University. He has worked as a speech clinician in public schools, Home Health Rehabilitation, and acute care in Kaiser hospitals. He currently works as a clinician with Clackamas Education Service District. Mr Tsugawa has made several trips to Latin America with cleft palate surgical and speech foundations to offer speech service to cleft palate children.

Kelly Jensen - Director of Planning/Interpreter

Kelly T. Jensen, B.A., M.B.A, is a business leader and management consultant with over 25 years experience introducing new technologies and management practices in the United States and Latin America. Specializing in healthcare, Mr. Jensen has worked with over 300 hospitals and health care systems to improve their effectiveness. In addition to supporting FACES, Mr. Jensen provides leadership for volunteer programs in faith-based organizations and alumni associations of Harvard University. He is fuent in English and Spanish, and conversant in German and Tzotzil Maya.

Brian Ryder - CRNA

Brian was born and raised in Grove City, Pennsylvania. He completed his undergrad work at University of Pennsylvania and then the Anesthesia program at Lankenau Medical Center in Philadephia, PA. Brian has worked at Kaiser for the 12 years, 8 of which he was the Chief CRNA. He has been married to Marsha Ryder for 31 years and has three children: Stephanie, who is working on her Masters in Public Health, Ian, who is working in middle management with the Four Seasons Hotel and Alex, who is currently with the Peace Corps in Ghana, Africa. Brian has worked with Operation Smile for the past 14 years and this will be his third mission with FACES Foundation.

Jackie Linstram - Scrub Technician

Jackie has been in the medical profession for over 30 years. She has worked at OHSU for 16 years and retired in January 2011. This is Jackie's 16th trip over seven years.

Tammy Berks - Post-Op Nurse

Tammy has been a nurse with Kaiser for 25 years working in pediatrics and day surgery. She has been involved with fundraising efforts for FACES and this is her fifth mission trip to Peru with FACES. Tammy has formed ongoing friendships with both staff and patients in Peru. She is very involved with her sons' sports and the Gladstone community. She is very thankful to her husband and children for their continued support.

Jesse Rader - Circulating Nurse/Interpreter

Jesse is a nurse in south operating room at OHSU and this is her third trip with FACES Foundation. She was in the Peace Corps serving in Swaziland 1994-1996. Jesse has a special kinship with Peru being that her mother is Peruvian and she has been traveling there since she was a baby. She enjoys working with this team each year, the hard work, dedication and the look on the faces of the families at the end of the day, which she says makes all the effort worth it.

Tracey Naylor - Post-Op Nurse

Tracey is currently a Registered Nurse at Kaiser PACU and this is her second trip to Peru with FACES Foundation. She has a 14-year-old son and an 8-year-old step-daughter. Tracey and her family love the great outdoors, all seasons and they love, LoVe, LOVE to travel. She is VERY excited for this trip and can't wait for her first bite of yuca! (Mmmmmmm!)

Theresa Nera - Scrub Nurse

Shellee Ramirez - Pre-Op/Coordinator

Shellee is a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) and CPR instructor at Kaiser and has worked there for 20 years. She has a BA in Education. Shellee has been to Egypt, Mexico, Canada and parts of the Caribbean.

Gay Tanner - Circulator

Leah Olson - Media + Public Relations/Photographer

Leah graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Journalism + Communication and Japanese language. In 2010 she moved to Kathmandu, Nepal, where she worked as a journalist and photographer for an English-language magazine. After her year in Nepal she worked at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University doing communications and research during the summer of 2011. She has traveled extensively in Southeast and South Asia and this will be her second trip to Peru with FACES.

Jennifer Craig - Speech Pathologist (Vanderbilt)

Jennifer Craig is a speech-language pathologist at the Vanderbilt Voice Center in Nashville, Tennessee. She is originally from southwest Florida. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida and her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology at Vanderbilt University. Jenn enjoys anything outdoors, sports, especially soccer and running, and cooking.

Natalie Rader - Student Helper/Interpreter

Natalie is 12 years old and a 6th grader at East Sylvan Middle School in the Spanish Immersion Program. She received her babysitters training with the Red Cross and loves working with kids. Natalie plays the flute, is on the CYO basketball team with St. John Fisher and also loves to run track. This is her frst trip to Peru and she is looking forward to learning about the culture and about FACES Foundation.

Delia Delgado Maldonado - FACES Coordinator for Peru/Interpreter

Delia Delgado is an English teacher in Chiclayo, Peru, and studied languages in university. She enjoys meeting new people and visiting new places and, when not working, her favorite free-time activity is walking. Delia loves her work with FACES because she is in direct contact with people, which she says is always a learning experience. She finds great satisfaction in seeing people's health and lives improve.

Fiorella Bellido - Orthodonist (Peru)