Yesterday, March 6th, was the first time our new clinic was used for patient care and it wasn’t even by us! We had the privilege of hosting a group of 4 dentists and 10 dental students from Temple University in Philadelphia, thanks to Haitian Health Foundation (HHF). They set up portable dental chairs on the porch of our new clinic, spread their instruments out on tables and quickly went to work pulling teeth on 46 patients. It was an exciting day for all, providing a very valuable service to the local communities. In addition, the dentists let me try my hand at pulling teeth – a first for me! They gave me the easy ones, of course, and talked me through the technique. But, by the end of the day, I had pulled six teeth! It’s a valuable skill to have here, since many of our patients come to us with dental pain and broken, painful teeth.
Here are some photos of the day’s activities:
Patients waiting for arrival of the dentists
Junior registering patients
School children awaiting their fate
Dr. Wolf greeting the visitors
The group setting up their portable dental chairs
Set up in the waiting area of our new clinic
The team at work. A total of 46 patient had teeth extracted during the day.
Dental professor and his student
The doctor completing an extraction.
Work area viewed from above.