Extraordinary Joes #5: Dr. Chait -- Surgeon, Sculptor & Saint
2,478 views · Published 19 April 2011 · 7:40 · Indexed 14 October 2026
Channel: TimesLIVE Video · 2011 · News & Politics
Cleft lip and palate, a birth defect that can happen in as many as one in 700 live births, can not only be a scary experience for a family to face, but an extremely costly one as well. So for someone to offer the repair procedure plus all the necessary follow-up procedures, such as speech therapy, orthodontists and counseling for free is nothing short of a miracle for poorer or disadvantaged families. Dr. Laurence Chait and his team of specialists at the Parklane Netcare Clinic do just that. Using his 36 years of experience as a plastic surgeon, Dr. Chait, who has become an honourary professor at Wits and is a renowned sculpture, heads up the "Vodacom Smiles For You" project, which offers disadvantaged families all the operations, support and information they need to ensure a cleft lip or palate child an lead a normal life. This is his extraordinary story. By Roderick Macleod
