Surgeries Supported For People Of All Ages Since Our Founding In 1999
Another baby is born with a cleft
From our founding, we have believed that actively centering DEIBA in all that we do is not only right, it is true to all that we are and all that we strive to be. DEIBA makes us a stronger, more effective organization.
Smile Train is a proudly woman-run and women-led. Women comprise 84% of staff at the VP level or higher and helm six of our eight offices outside the US.
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"One day, when I was walking to the hospital to work, I saw a rocket hit one of the buildings in front of me. I had to take a different route, but I still went to work that day."
- Dr. Natalia Tetruieva, head of maxillofacial surgery at Smile Train partner OHMATDIT in Kyiv, Ukraine
Smile Train has been funding essential medical services for our Ukrainian partners since Russia invaded, including:
Healing from a cleft requires a holistic process unique as each patient. That's why our model is really a promise: We will strive to provide you with the nutritional support you need to reach a healthy weight. Once you reach it, a local team will perform cleft surgeries that will transform your life. Afterward, we will work to provide you with speech services, dentistry, and orthodontics for as long as you need. Our model is a promise to meet our patients' needs with the highest-quality care possible because children with clefts deserve no less.
Children like Alex and Kendra from Mexico
With Smile Train, talented, passionate health professionals from low-resource settings are bringing cutting-edge medical techniques to their communities… and training their peers. This self-sustaining, global ecosystem of empowerment is saving countless lives each day, and you make it possible. Emboldened by your investments, our partners are also taking their rightful places at the world's most influential cleft care conferences… center stage.
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From Dar es Salaam to Duluth, nearly everyone affected by a cleft has felt alone at one time or another. From our in-person and virtual Cleft Cons to our Love Meets Joy podcast to our brand-new College Scholarship Program, our community initiatives are here to send a message loud and clear to everyone with a cleft: You are not alone. There are so many others around the world eager to go on this journey with you. And Smile Train can take you to them.
"I want everyone to know that it's okay to be different. We're all unique, whether physically or mentally. People born with a different ability can accomplish anything anyone else can."
- Ling Clobes, Inaugural Smile Train Scholarship recipient
In her own words, Monica Bush of Indiana describes her journey from confusion and fear upon learning her son would be born with a cleft to becoming the tireless, empowered, and empowering cleft advocate she is today.
Read her story +Smile Train is proud to partner with businesses who share our commitment to healthcare, sustainability, and smiles.
In September 2021, we launched a five-year partnership with Dentsply Sirona, the world's largest manufacturer of professional dental products and technologies, to improve oral health globally and build a brighter, more sustainable future for cleft-affected children and families.
After only one year, their $5 million financial contribution is already providing high-visibility opportunities, elevating the level of care at several Smile Train partners through clinical education access and in-kind support, and generating even more donations through employee giving campaigns and public fundraisers.
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Smile Train believes that making world-class cleft care accessible in low-resource settings creates a high tide that lifts all regional healthcare. That's why we established a truly global network of healthcare research and innovation capacity with the goal of nothing less than democratizing medical research and development and putting the tools for change where they belong — in the hands of local experts.
Priya Desai - A Positive Disruptive Force in Global Health
Smile Train's SVP of Research, Data, and Innovation, Priya Desai takes cold, hard numbers from our partners and turns them into healthy smiles for ever more children in need. We caught up with her to learn more about her background, the state of research and innovation at Smile Train, and what life is like at the intersection of math and magic.
Meet PriyaIn a year of turmoil and uncertainty, our heroic local partners boldly made smiles and saved lives. More than 108,000 of them.
And they could do it only because you likewise showed up for them.
Thank you for choosing hope in 2022. Thank you for choosing to make miracles — and smiles — possible for children in need.
