The dental team decided to try a different tack this year in an effort to facilitate sustainability of the dental program when we leave. So, with the help of Carolina Pinel, a public health dentist in Gracias, we organized 3 mornings of training for public health dentists from Gracias and Lepaera. We tailored the lectures to the needs of the dentists and taught them new techniques such as Bush Orthodontics which is a way to straighten the teeth without braces. Some other topics we covered include; Pathology, Communication, Motivational Interviewing, Behaviour, Pulp Therapy, Trauma , Pharmocology, Infant examinations, Risk Assessment and Risk Management.
In the afternoons we saw children in a rehabilitation center called Crile. Crile is non-government, totally dependent on donations and staffed primarily by volunteers. What they are trying to accomplish with their limited resources is mind boggling to North Americans! The equipment is mostly handmade and we continue to be amazed by how resourceful the people of Honduras can be.
The children we worked with all had cerebral palsy and were severely malnourished due to difficulty with swallowing and no access to nutritional supplements. Moises, a sweet 9 year old boy, weighed only 19 pounds but had a smile that filled the room. The children are all being cared for in their homes by their mothers, obviously with love but none of the children had ever received dental care and the concern was that infected teeth were contributing to their failure to thrive.
After we finished doing procedures on the children at Crile we hailed what we thought was a taxi but the Honduran version of a taxi is completely different to a Canadian one! It was quite an adventure getting home but we made it in one piece.
Tomorrow we will be going to a village with 8 of the local dentists in order to give them the opportunity to practice the techniques we taught them at the beginning of the week. Stay tuned for more news!\
If you would like to donate to our mission click HERE. Select personal donation and in the ‘other’ section specify Honduras Medical and Dental Team and the account number 70-410-01
Hasta Mañana readers!