Spaltkind Phang mit seiner Mutter. Bald steht die lebensverändernde Operation an. 
We started helping cleft children in Vietnam in 2006. In 2016, we expanded our project through a cooperation with the Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation.
The result of our efforts: 4,586 cleft surgeries provided since 2006.
In 2023, we funded more than 262 cleft surgeries in Vietnam.
Almost 1.7 million children are born in Vietnam each year. Some 3,000 of these children are born with cleft lip and palate.
The foundation stone for our work to help these cleft children was laid in 2006. After the first years of development, we started working together with the aid organization Center for Researching and Aiding Smile Operation (OSCA) and the surgeon Dr. Ai from Hanoi in the north of Vietnam in 2009.
We were able to expand our help in Vietnam thanks to a cooperation with the Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation (NCF) from Taiwan in 2016. In the same year, we added a location in Ho Chi Minh City in the south of Vietnam. After the first successful years of collaboration, we further expanded the project by launching another joint project location in the summer of 2019: our second project in Hanoi. We ceased funding for the project in Ho Chi Minh City in 2022.
In 2022, our Vietnamese partner surgeon Dr. Ai performed nearly 90 surgeries. At National Children's Hospital, we funded 200 out of a total of 400 surgeries in partnership with NCF.
Dr. Ai's main advocacy is for cleft children from the many ethnic minorities in the mountainous areas bordering Laos and China. He reaches out to them through the excellent network of his organization, OSCA. The National Children's Hospital in Hanoi is a widely known and highly regarded contact point for children with cleft malformation.
In our joint project with the NCF, children at the National Children's Hospital in Hanoi benefit from an interdisciplinary therapy: NAM as a preoperative measure, ENT medicine, speech therapy, as well as psycho-social support for the parents are offered.
News from Vietnam
Successful partnership: The Nordhooff Craniofacial Foundation, Taiwan and Deutsche Cleft KinderhilfeOur Vietnamese partner organization OSCA (Center for Researching and Aiding Smile Operation) based in Hanoi was founded in 2007 by local doctors, therapists and nurses. The special strength of OSCA is a good network throughout the country thanks to which we reach affected children and their families who would otherwise be cut off from any medical care. Our cooperation with OSCA is led by the experienced surgeon Dr. Ai.
Since 2016, we have been running a joint project with the renowned Taiwan-based Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation (NCF) to provide comprehensive care for cleft children in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). Our partnership with NCF is based on the fundamental understanding that a comprehensive and, above all, long-term treatment concept is crucial for sustainable therapeutic success. The Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan, with which NCF has a partnership, is regarded worldwide as a leading treatment center in the field of cleft therapy.
The cooperation with NCF was initiated by plastic and aesthetic surgeon PD Dr. Daniel Lonic, who completed a fellowship at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital from 2014 to 2016. Together with his colleague, oral and maxillofacial surgeon PD Dr. Dr. Denys Loeffelbein, he supervises our clinic project in Hanoi. On average, the two of them are on site once a year and operate children with cleft deformities together with the Vietnamese team. Prof. Lun-Jou Lo from Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan is in charge of the project and the annual operations.
Partner of the first hour: Dr. Ai from Hanoi
Successful partnership: The Nordhooff Craniofacial Foundation, Taiwan and Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe
PD Dr. Daniel Lonic (right) and PD Dr. Dr. Denys Loeffelbein (left) with Prof. Lun-Jou Lo during a joint aid mission in Vietnam.Impressions from vietnam
"Land in the south" is the literal translation of the country name Vietnam. To its west, Vietnam is bordered by Laos and Cambodia, and to the north, by China.
Many wars, especially the Indochina War and the Vietnam War, have marred the history of Vietnam. These wars brought destruction to the country and many people lost their lives. The Vietnamese people are correspondingly young today. More than 22 percent of the population are not older than 15 years.
Vietnam is making rapid economic progress. Until 2020, this was also reflected in a gratifying decline in poverty: Since the Coronavirus pandemic, the share of people living under the national poverty line has unfortunately increased again: While in 2020, 5.2 percent of the population were living under the national poverty line, in 2022 it was 9.3 percent. People from the approximately 50 ethnic minorities in particular often live a difficult life in great poverty.
A new life for a child
The surgery is a key turning point in the life of a child with cleft. With your donation, you help change a child's life for the better.
Any amount helps.
A new life for a child
The surgery is a key turning point in the life of a child with cleft. With your donation, you help change a child's life for the better.
Any amount helps.
