Projects in Health

Operation Smile (Operación Sonrisa Nicaragua)

We are Operation Smile sponsors, and recruit cases of children with cleft lips and cleft palates from the coffee growing communities of Nicaragua to receive free surgeries. Together, we create smiles, change lives, and heal humanity. CISA Exportadora started supporting Operation Smile in Nicaragua in 1995 with monetary contributions and in 2001 CISA started to help with the missions, recruitment and logistical support.

In Nicaragua, Operation Smile medical volunteers repair childhood facial deformities while building public and private partnerships that advocate for sustainable healthcare systems for children and families. Together, we create smiles, change lives, and heal humanity. CISA Exportadora started supporting Operation Smile in Nicaragua in 1995 with monetary contributions and in 2001 CISA started to help with the missions, recruitment and logistical support.

Today, we are involved in the following Operation Smile activities:

• Fund raising campaigns with associates, clients and friends.
• Associates donate vacation days and CISA Exportadora matches the amount donated by associates.
• Recruitment of cases in coffee growing communities
• Logistical support during Campaigns
• Donation of medical equipment

Impact

• 500 children from coffee growing communities have been operated since 2001, representing  40% of total cases of Operation Smile
• US$50,000 in donations to La Mascota, the biggest children hospital in Nicaragua and to Matagalpa Hospital, one of the biggest and most visited hospitals in the northern part of Nicaragua.

Average costs incurred by CISA per O.S. Mission:

• US$30 Logistical Support per Child from communities to operation center

Medical Brigades

We organize and collaborate with national and international medical brigades, giving medical support to patients of scarce resources. To date we have supported 2 International brigades that have benefited over 2000 people in the coffee growing regions of Nicaragua.   These Missions are done with the support of Nuova Officina, an Italian voluntary organization that has worked in Nicaragua for the last 8 years.

Partners & Alliances

• Operation Smile
• Paulig
• MINSA