Landmark Summer 2020

4 Through the HUGS (Help Us Give Smiles) Foundation, which he began in 2003, Dr. Quatela along with teams of surgeons, anesthe- siologists, nurses, administrative personnel, and volunteers have completed 35 missions and nearly 1,800 surgeries. Together, they are helping children with cleft lips, cleft palates, microtia, cleft rhinoplas- ty, and other congenital facial deformities. This type of work is especially meaningful for Dr. Quatela who be- lieves every human being has the fundamental right to the oppor- tunity to grow and develop socially and intellectually without being ostracized or rejected due to physical abnormality. “It takes me back to why I went to med school,” said Dr. Quatela. “You don’t think about insurance or if the family can afford the surgery. All you think about is the children and the work. I get more out of it than I give.” When the foundation started, HUGS was supporting two mission trips annually, now, it supports six. This year, teams were scheduled to spend six weeks between Vietnam, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Peru, most of which have already been cancelled due to COVID. In that time, anywhere from 350 to nearly 500 children would have under- gone surgery – mostly to repair cleft lips and underdeveloped ears, which is a condition known as microtia. To achieve this incredible feat, it takes a team of experienced and dedicated medical professionals who value the HUGS mission as much as Dr. Quatela. His teams have included some of the best medical professionals in their fields from the University of Rochester, Stanford, and Harvard, as well as many of Dr. Quatela’s former fellows from his post residency training program. Once the teams arrive, usually on a Friday or Saturday, they hit the ground running. They see about 125 patients on Sunday who they narrow down to the 60-80 patients who will have surgery the follow- ing week. By end of day Sunday, the operating room schedules have AReason to Smile Over the course of his career, Dr. Vito Quatela, Aquinas Class of 1971 , has earned recognition as one of the top facial plastic surgeons in the region, nation, and world. For 46 weeks out of the year, he practices out of The Quatela Center for Plastic Surgery here in Rochester, NY. The other six weeks, Dr. Quatela can be found in underserved countries giving smiles and hope to children born with facial deformities. H idden H ero AQUINAS LANDMARK | SUMMER 2020 A before and after comparison of a young patient who underwent surgery to fix a cleft palate. Photo courtesy of the HUGS Foundation. Dr. Vito Quatela ‘71 . Photo courtesy of The Quatela Center for Plastic Surgery.