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St. Luke's Children's Cleft and Craniofacial Clinic

The team at the St. Luke’s Children’s Cleft and Craniofacial Clinic offers cutting-edge, coordinated, single-visit, multidisciplinary care for patients with cleft lip and palate, craniosynostosis, and other craniofacial conditions. 

Our team focuses on providing parents, families, and patients with an exceptional experience and outcome. In addition to offering evaluations for all ages—newborns to adults—we also offer prenatal consultations, providing expecting parents with critical information and reassurance before their baby is born. Our clinic location within the Idaho Elks Children’s Pavilion helps ease the stress of a doctor’s visit for our younger patients.

Our surgeons use the latest techniques including minimally invasive surgery, 3D computer virtual planning, distraction osteogenesis (mandible and cranial), enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols, and opioid avoidance.

We treat a variety of conditions including cleft lip and palate; craniosynostosis; Pierre Robin Sequence; velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI)/hypernasal speech; 22q11.2 deletion syndrome; microtia; plagiocephaly; Aperts, Crouzon, Pfeiffer and other syndromes; cephalohematoma; hemifacial microsomia; Treacher Collins syndrome/oculo auriculo vertebral (OAV) spectrum; and fibrous dysplasia.
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If you have a medical emergency, do not use online scheduling. Call 911 or proceed to your nearest emergency department. If you require immediate assistance for a non-emergency condition, please contact the clinic directly by phone.

Providers

  • Stephanie E. Balais, SLP

    Pediatric Speech Language Therapy

    Biography

    Stephanie Balais, MS, CCC-SLP works with children who have cleft lip and palates, velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI), and resonance issues. She also has interests in early intervention, fluency issues, Down syndrome, autism, and ADHD assessment and treatment for children with executive function deficits. 

    Stephanie earned her master's degree from Idaho State University. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, swimming, camping, cooking, baking, and spending time with her family.

    Favorite Book: School Bugs by David Carter.

  • Kristin G. Booton, SLP

    Pediatric Speech Language Therapy

    Biography

    Kristin Booton, MS, CCC/SLP specializes in augmentative communication, including programming and implementation for many different augmentative/high tech speech generating devices and iPad applications. She has training in feeding and swallowing disorders, breastfeeding/infant latching, completes videofluoroscopic swallow studies, and is an SOS feeding therapist. She has worked in both inpatient and outpatient settings, and loves using books in therapy.

    Kristin earned her master's degree in speech and hearing sciences from Portland State University. In her free time, she loves to hike, run, camp, and play outside with her husband and children.

    Availability

    Accepting new patients
     

  • Jennifer J. Cenarrusa, SLP

    Pediatric Speech Language Therapy

    Biography

    Jennifer Cenarrusa, MS, CCC-SLP specializes in treating pediatric patients of all ages with cleft palate, as well as adolescents and teens with voice disorders including vocal cord dysfunction. She is particularly passionate about working with the cleft palate population, and enjoys helping to improve her patients' speech and quality of life.

    Jennifer earned her master’s degree in speech-language pathology from Idaho State University. She enjoys traveling, running, gardening, and spending time with her family.

    Availability

    Accepting new patients
     

  • Phillip L. Chaffin Jr., MD

    Pediatric Otolaryngology

    Biography

    Phillip Chaffin, MD serves as the medical director of the Hearing Loss and Cochlear Implant Program at St. Luke’s. He has clinical interests in the management of hearing loss and the surgical treatment of cleft lip and palate.

    Dr. Chaffin is a diplomate of the American Board of Otolaryngology and a member of the American Cochlear Implant Alliance and American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association. He frequently travels overseas on medical missions to treat children with cleft lip and palate.

    Availability

    Accepting new patients
     
  • Patrick A. Gerety, MD

    Patrick A. Gerety, MD

    Pediatric Plastic Surgery

    Biography

    Patrick Gerety, MD specializes in pediatric plastic surgery and cleft and craniofacial surgery. Prior to joining St Luke’s, Dr. Gerety was an assistant professor of surgery at Indiana University. He was also the director of the Craniofacial Anomalies Program at Riley Hospital for Children and acted as the chief of pediatric plastic surgery.

    Dr. Gerety focuses on comprehensive pediatric plastic surgery. He treats conditions including craniosynostosis, cleft lip and palate, Pierre Robin Sequence, hemifacial microsomia, vascular malformations/hemangioma, congenital nevus, dermoid cysts, pilomatricoma, facial lacerations and fractures, facial paralysis, and ear deformities (microtia, prominent ears, neonatal ear molding). He also treats pediatric breast conditions including macromastia, gynecomastia, Poland syndrome, accessory nipple, tuberous breast, and breast asymmetry.

    Outside of work, Dr. Gerety loves to run, hike, camp, and mountain bike. He also loves photography and mostly aims his camera at his wife and daughters.

    Availability

    Accepting new patients
     

Conditions

Cleft Lip and Palate
Cleft lip is a treatable birth defect. It happens when the tissues of the upper jaw and nose don't join as expected during fetal development.
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Contact Us In Boise (208) 381-2222