The Plasticos bags all ready to go at LAX airport.

The team arrives.

Welcome to Armenia!

After 14 hours of traveling and over three hours at the airport, the Plasticos team has finally arrived at hour hotel in Yerevan, Armenia at 12:30 AM. Although everyone is physically drained, there is a subdued excitement about amazing team we have  put together and the work that we will be doing during our 10-day stay.

It’s hard to believe that it has already been about a year since part of our team was last in Yerevan. The Horowitzs, the Burns and the Gertmenians conducted a site visit in April of 2010 to gather information and forge new relationships, as well as strengthen existing ones, to lay the foundation for our current mission. Since last year, we have been busy keeping in contact with key people in Armenia and putting together a team from the US. Our team consists of 15 individuals: 3 surgeons, 2 anesthesiologists, a pediatrician, 2 OR nurses, 2 recovery nurses, a coordinator and co-coordinator, and 3 team members.

Rachel Russell (OR nurse and Director of Materials) and Irene Landry (OR nurse) spent countless hours organizing supplies and equipment for Armenia. We always try to be as self-sufficient as we can; we want to make sure that we have all the supplies that we will ever need on the trip, and we always try to donate some supplies at the end of our stay.

Tomorrow we will set up for a full day of screening, which is one of the most exciting parts of the trip because we get to meet children and their families who are hopeful for surgery.

Rachel Russell, R.N., Dr. Burns, Joanne Horowitz and Dr. Horowitz at the Plasticos storage unit.

Dr. Horowitz and Joanne prepare cleft palate kits.

Instruments list

Instruments