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Dana S. Smith, M.D. honored as 950th ABFPRS Diplomate
When asked why facial plastic surgery beckoned as a career calling, Dana S. Smith, M.D. did not have to ponder very long. "I still have the typed operative reports from two hernia operations that my grandfather, an otolaryngologist, performed on me when I was a small child. As a matter of fact, both my mother's parents were physicians— my grandmother was my pediatrician until she retired. Although my grandfather completed an otolaryngology residency at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, he immediately had to leave for World War II after he finished his training. When he came back after the war, the medical need was so great he instead worked as a general surgeon in a small town with my grandmother. (Smith is happy to report that his grandfather is still alive and doing well at 95-years-old!) I appreciated my grandparents' dedication to helping others and witnessed the profound difference physicians could make in patients' lives. Since then, I have never wavered from my decision to pursue medicine as a career," he relates proudly.
Smith's immersion in facial plastic surgery actually started when he was a medical student at Vanderbilt, where he worked with Drs. Russell Ries and Brian Burkey doing skin cancer reconstructions, microvascular reconstructive surgery, and maxillofacial trauma. He went on to Oregon Health Sciences University for his residency and was inspired by cleft lip and palate operations performed by Drs. Ted Cook and Tom Wang. Smith gained additional insight into these complex procedures when he worked with Dr. Henry Milczuk, a pediatric otolaryngologist at OHSU and Dr. Jeff Israel, who was the director of the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Cleft Palate Team.
Knowing that he had found his medical niche, Smith began an AAFPRS fellowship with Dr. Larry Marentette in 2006 at the University of Michigan. Marentette helped Smith further hone his skills in craniomaxillofacial surgery and anterior skull base surgery and also introduced him to Dr. Shan Baker, who gave Smith additional insights into skin cancer reconstruction and cosmetic procedures.
"Facial reconstructive surgery offers me the ability to make a lasting difference in others' lives," he states. "I feel as if I am following in my grandparents' career footpaths, and I'd like to think that some of their commitment to a life of service has rubbed off on me," he adds. (I took the liberty of adding this quote because I thought it was a nice tie-in to your grandparents. If you feel something else is more appropriate, please let me know.)
Smith was hired by Kaiser Permanente after his fellowship and was able to work closely again with Dr. Israel for the next year to immerse himself even more deeply into cleft lip and palate surgery, as well as the mechanics of directing the cleft palate team. His talent for performing these complex procedures was recognized by the specialists he works with and he has now assumed the leadership position as the director of the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Cleft Palate Team.
Smith's dedication to offering cleft lip and palate procedures has stretched beyond US boundaries. "I have gone to Peru twice and I was also able to go to Russia two years ago with Dr. Peter Adamson on an AAFPRS Face to Face International mission. I am returning to Peru with Dr. Israel in December and hope to continue work there on a long-term basis," he adds. "International missions have, historically, had very little long-term follow-up, so this presents a great opportunity for improvement in longitudinal evaluation and treatment, such as speech outcomes for cleft palate patients. It means a lot to me to see these progressions," he concludes.
Shan Baker, ABFPRS President, offers the following conclusion: "We all know that facial plastic surgeons have some of the most advanced training in cleft lip and palate reconstructions offered in the United States. Dr. Smith's exemplary work in this specialty arena is a shining example of that training and a wonderful reflection of the breadth and depth of surgeons who seek certification by the ABFPRS."
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