Setting the Standard for Cleft Treatment in Bolivia and Beyond

It takes so much more than surgery to treat a cleft.

Fundación Ayninakuna is living proof. Nestled high in the Andes Mountains, this Smile Train partner center works with young patients and their families to provide top-of-the-line, comprehensive cleft treatment encompassing their entire healing journey.

How comprehensive?

From initial evaluation and nutritional counseling through surgery, follow-ups, orthopedics, orthodontics, psychosocial work, speech therapy and more, Ayninakuna is dedicated to addressing the specific needs of each baby, child, and adolescent with a cleft in a way that is thorough, compassionate, and lasting.

“I always tell my patients, we meet each other when they are born, sometimes a week old, and we discharge them at seventeen,” explains dentist Dr. Yolanda Santiváñez.

The entire Ayninakuna staff shares Dr. Santiváñez’s approach, working to build close relationships with the patients and families under their care from day one. That human connection, they emphasize, is essential for successful cleft treatment.

“A patient or family who arrives at the foundation and is supported psychologically will have a different concept, perception of themselves in the future,” says executive director Julieta Vilca Guzmán.

Fundación Ayninakuna is a model for the sustainable care that Smile Train helps build all around the world. Because if there’s one thing our 25 years of experience and more than two million surgeries sponsored have proven, it’s that lasting cleft solutions start with local doctors.

For that reason, Smile Train invests ongoing resources in world-class partners like the team at Fundación Ayninakuna, providing support that includes monthly training for staff, access to special resources, and, of course, 100% free, high-quality cleft treatment for all in need.

“Working with these children fills me with great joy and satisfaction,” says pediatrician Dr. Fabiola Chaira Lia, “because I know that I am doing something good for society and for that child.”