A charitable medical delegation led by Taiwanese specialists in cleft
lip and palate repair will leave for Mongolia August 21 to treat patients there
who have the condition.

The Taipei-based Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation has been working to
arrange the trip since it first visited Ulaanbaatar in 2010, when it helped 22
people with craniofacial deformities, said Rebecca Wang, the foundation”s
executive director.

Mongolia is the 10th country the foundation has helped, and it will
lead a medical delegation of 13 doctors and experts with the financial support
of Rotary International, hoping to help at least 25 patients during the
five-day stay.

To date, five Mongolian doctors have joined the program, helping nearly
250 patients.

An even more well-rounded team will be formed once speech pathologist
Bulgan Baasan and surgeon Ayanga Gongorjav finish their training in Taiwan at
the end of July, Wang said.

“I”m very happy and satisfied… I have gained a lot of knowledge
and experience here in Taiwan,” Baasan said of her three-month training
program. “I strongly believe I can help more cleft lip and palate patients
in Mongolia.”

Gongorjav, who is also the president of the Mongolian Cleft Lip and
Palate Association, expressed his gratitude for Taiwan”s help. Although
Mongolia has worked with Japan and South Korea before, the cooperation with
Taiwan has been “real and wide,” he said. Besides giving free
operations in rural areas, Taiwan also provided training workshops and medical
equipment to help as many people as possible. “Taiwan has changed our
concept of (medical) treatment,” he said.