Dr Dipesh Rao is a dually qualified Maxillofacial surgeon and graduated from the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences for Dentistry and the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences for Medicine.
He did his Maxillofacial Surgical training from SDM, Dharwad, which is considered one of the prestigious institutions for this speciality. He was the best outgoing postgraduate student, for which he was awarded the Dr Veerendra Hegde award for academic excellence. Following his Maxillofacial training he completed a one year Cleft lip and Palate fellowship at the Bhagwan Mahaveer Jain Hospital in the year 2010-11.
Globally only a few surgeons have the privilege to have trained in both Paediatric Maxillofacial Surgery and Craniofacial Surgery, and Dr Rao is one of them. He completed his Paediatric Maxillofacial fellowship at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, which is considered one of the world’s best Children’s Hospital. He gained his Craniofacial expertise by completing a Royal College of Surgery accredited fellowship at the Oxford Craniofacial Unit. The Oxford unit is globally recognised for its pioneering work in the field of Craniofacial surgery and its well-integrated multidisciplinary practice.
Dipesh’s spectrum of work includes cleft lip and palate deformity, syndromic and non-syndromic craniosynostosis (fusion of skull sutures), complex facial deformity requiring orthognathic correction and distraction osteogenesis and facial cosmetic procedures including surgical and non-surgical treatment options.
Dr Rao prefers to keep the child at the apex and the doctor and parents at the base to form an interlinked ‘relationship triangle’ providing care from antenatal diagnosis to adulthood. He dreams of a world where every child born with a facial deformity can explore his or her full potential and lead a life without social stigmas.
Dipesh is a wildlife photographer by avocation. His pictures have been published in the prestigious Wild Planet magazine, and he received a certificate of appreciation from Wildlife India Photography Awards in 2017.