Operation Restore Hope Australia

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Operation Restore Hope Australia

Operation Restore Hope is an Australian surgical charity providing care for less fortunate children

Operation Restore Hope is an international surgical charity founded and headquartered in Australia and made up of volunteers from around the world. Our volunteers donate their time and skills to provide surgical care for the less fortunate children of the Philippines with cleft lip and palate deformities.

07/10/2026

Where skill meets purpose. 💙

For our surgical teams, every procedure represents years of training, experience and expertise brought together for one purpose: giving a child the opportunity for a healthier future.

Cleft surgery is intricate work. Behind every operation is a multidisciplinary team working side by side, focused on the smallest details and united by the responsibility entrusted to them by each child and family.

Our missions bring together medical professionals from the Philippines, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and beyond — sharing skills, knowledge and experience while providing cleft and craniofacial care to children who may otherwise struggle to access it.

Different countries. Different backgrounds. One team, one purpose.
Restoring hope. One child at a time.

05/10/2026

Every surgery begins long before the operating theatre. 💙

Behind every child cared for by Operation Restore Hope is a team working carefully through patient records, assessments and preparations to make sure each child receives the care they need.

From registration and screening, to medical histories, pre-operative checks, surgery and follow-up care, every step matters.

It may not be the part of a mission that people see most often, but this careful preparation helps our medical teams make informed decisions and ensures our patients remain at the centre of everything we do.

Because changing a life takes more than one operation. It takes a whole team, working together at every stage of the journey.

03/10/2026

Meet some of the smallest members of the ORHA team. 🦘🦁🦅

For a child arriving at hospital, the unfamiliar sights, sounds and faces can be overwhelming. That’s why creating a warm and reassuring environment is an important part of every Operation Restore Hope mission.

Sometimes that reassurance comes from a surgeon or nurse. Sometimes it comes from Mum or Dad. And sometimes… it comes from a kangaroo in an ORHA shirt. 💙
These little companions help bring some fun and familiarity into the hospital environment, giving our young patients something to hold, play with and smile about during a very big few days in their lives.

Because restoring hope isn't only about what happens in the operating theatre. It's about caring for the whole child throughout their journey.

29/09/2026

This one lends itself to a more intimate post about the moment immediately after surgery and the human side of clinical care.

Sometimes, the most important thing we can offer is comfort. 💙

After surgery, our youngest patients wake in unfamiliar surroundings — tired, vulnerable and often far from everything that feels familiar.

In these moments, care is about more than observations, medications and clinical checks. It is also about a gentle touch, a reassuring voice and making sure a little one feels safe as they begin their recovery.

For our medical teams, carrying a child from the operating theatre is the beginning of another important stage of their care. Behind them are hours of careful surgery. Ahead is healing, follow-up and, we hope, a future changed for the better.

It is a quiet moment in a much bigger journey — but one that captures what caring for children is all about.

Skilled hands perform the surgery. Caring hands carry them forward. 💙

27/09/2026

Precision in every moment. Purpose behind every procedure. 💙

Cleft and craniofacial surgery is intricate work. It requires extraordinary concentration, technical skill and a multidisciplinary team working seamlessly around each patient.

For our volunteer medical professionals, every procedure represents years of training and experience being freely given to a child who may otherwise have limited access to specialist surgical care.

And while a photograph captures just one moment in the operating theatre, the impact of that work can extend far beyond it — supporting a child's ability to eat, speak, grow and face the future with greater confidence.

This is why our teams volunteer.
This is why every surgery matters.

Skilled hands. Generous hearts. Restoring hope.

25/09/2026

Behind every patient is a community of care. 💙

The work of Operation Restore Hope Australia is only possible because of the people who come together around every child and family we support.

Doctors, nurses, coordinators, hospital staff, volunteers and families — each plays a different role, but all contribute to the same journey.

Our partnerships in the Philippines are particularly important. Local teams help us identify patients, coordinate care, support families and provide continuity long after a mission or screening day has finished.

Photos like this remind us that ORHA has never been about one person, one team or one country. It's about people working together and contributing what they can to create something much bigger.

Different roles. Different backgrounds. One shared purpose — restoring hope. 💙

23/09/2026

Surgery is an important milestone. But it isn’t the end of the journey. 💛

Following surgery, our teams take the time to see our patients again — checking their recovery, assessing healing and making sure each child is progressing as expected.

These post-operative follow-ups are an important part of responsible cleft and craniofacial care. They also give families an opportunity to ask questions, raise concerns and receive guidance about what comes next.

For our team, there is something particularly rewarding about these moments. After the anticipation of screening and the intensity of surgery, we get to see our young patients back with their families and beginning the next stage of their journey.

Because our responsibility doesn't finish when a child leaves the operating theatre.

From screening, through surgery and into recovery — care means being there at every step. 💙

21/09/2026

Building care that lasts. 💙

At the heart of Operation Restore Hope Australia’s work in the Philippines are the relationships we have built with dedicated local medical professionals over many years.

Pictured here is Dr Gen Acosta, one of the surgeons who works alongside ORHA in providing cleft and craniofacial care to patients and families in the Philippines.

Our mission has never simply been about Australian teams arriving, performing surgery and leaving. It is about partnership — combining expertise, strengthening local relationships and working alongside doctors and hospitals who remain part of their communities long after each mission concludes.

People like Dr Acosta are an essential part of making that possible.

Because creating lasting change in healthcare isn't something any one organisation can do alone.

It takes partnership. It takes trust. And above all, it takes people committed to helping others.

18/09/2026

More than three decades of restoring hope. 💙

Operation Restore Hope Australia has always been built around people willing to give their time, expertise and energy to help others.

Pictured together are three people who represent an important part of that story: Graeme MacKinnon, Director and Co-Founder; Dr Darryl Hodgkinson, Director, Founder and Plastic Surgeon; and Darryl’s son, James Hodgkinson, now a Director of ORHA.

From the people who helped establish ORHA more than 30 years ago, to a new generation helping carry its mission forward, the faces may change but the purpose remains the same.

To provide life-changing cleft and craniofacial care to children and families who might otherwise go without.

There is something very special about seeing ORHA's history, present and future standing side by side. ❤️

A legacy of service. A new generation. The same commitment to restoring hope.

16/09/2026

No surgery is the work of one person. 💙

Behind every procedure is a team — surgeons, anaesthetists, nurses and volunteers — each bringing their own expertise, experience and focus to the operating room.

Cleft and craniofacial surgery demands precision, but it also demands trust. People working together, communicating, anticipating what comes next and remaining completely focused on the child in their care.

For our volunteer medical teams, these are intense days and long hours. But there is also something incredibly special about professionals coming together from different places and backgrounds, united by one purpose.

One team. One patient at a time. One shared commitment to restoring hope.

Address

Sydney, NSW
1360

Telephone

+61293627480

Website

http://www.operationrestorehope.org/

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