Work the World run yearly Dental Outreach Projects

Instead of thinking about what they can offer their hosts, the focus is on self interest – “what can I put on my CV?”, “where can I travel in my free time?” and “how can I make the most of my summer holiday?”. The article quotes 1 in 5 students feeling as if their time overseas did nothing to benefit the local community, but 9 out of 10 feeling that their self-confidence and self-motivation had increased. The argument is that the Brits are exercising a “new colonialism” and that it is actually doing more harm than good.

But how do you choose an overseas project if your focus is on the community you are visiting? If you read the glossy covers and interactive websites of some of the larger volunteering companies, they all claim to “make a genuine difference” to communities and environments around the world. If the government funded agency VSO (Voluntary Services Overseas) is to be believed though, many of these companies do not bring benefits and “increasingly cater to the needs of young people seeking to combine a little worthiness with a lot of travel, rather than the communities they claim to support”.

VSO recommend 2 year placements as the best way to travel and work overseas if you truly want to support local communities, but most students are limited to their summer holidays. This does not mean the doors are closed though. The big difference between Work the World and other travel companies is that the electives and placements we offer actually support VSO’s belief that the best way to bring benefit to the community is to use skills you have developed at home.

Creating jobs in local communities.

Daniel, a dental student from Sheffield commented that

“Because I am a dentistry student, with a level of experience, I was eligible to sign up for a dental outreach project, visiting rural communities that have no access to dental care. The plan was to screen and treat school children for free, working under the supervision of professional dentists from that country. This meant that as well as helping people by using what skills I did have, I was also going to get some really useful experience for my final year at uni”.

Daniel ended up in Nepal, treating school children in the mountainous Annapurna range. Many of them had severe problems causing them pain but whose parents could not afford to travel for treatment. Over a two week period the project screened and treated over 1000 people. They also made huge progress helping local communities in their awareness of oral hygiene and identification of dental problems. It was a short project but it made a difference.

The Guardian report also focussed on how to best support the host country. One respondent to their survey “felt that the local community could have done the work we were doing; there were lots of unemployed people there. I’d have preferred to work with local unemployed and helped them in some way to benefit their community.”

It’s crucial that student work should not detract from the community. Work the World train up local staff to run the projects, providing jobs and a demand for furnishings and food. We also provide pre-departure training and in depth notes for the hospitals so that students working in the hospital will know what is expected from them and there is no detriment to the host country patients. Read more about our ethical practice here.

Read the full Guardian article here.

The welcome ceremony at Jurethum

The first camp was set up in Bidhur, a charming hill top settlement that overlooks a beautiful river valley with ancient temples scattered around the main village square. The last dental camp was conducted over a year ago by the rotary club, so it was a good opportunity for us to follow up on the good work. The community screening and the treatments were carried out at the village school with the portable dental equipments brought in from Kathmandu. ‘The Famous Farm’ was our student dentists’ home for 2 weeks – a restored Newari manor house, tastefully decorated with traditional Nepali furniture. The kitchen served wonderful local food and the cook also bent backwards to accommodate our student’s request for some western food!

The results from the first camp were impressive – 1002 people were screened with 594 those referred for treatment. Often the challenge is to make them understand the importance of coming back for treatment, so we were pleased to see that 540 returned with their treatment tickets. The whole project was a great success, with each student screening an average of 10 Nepalis per day, and treating 5. Great opportunities for hands-on work under the supervision of a professional dentist.

The second camp was established in Jurethum, conveniently located about an hour away from Bidhur. It’s a typical Nepalese village built around the trunk road which links Nuwakot and Kathmandu, situated about 35 km North West of the capital. For this reason, the village is also known to locals as ’35 kilo’. The student dentists and staff were accommodated at a friendly, family run guesthouse called the Fall and Trout Village Fish Farm in Kakani. The temporary clinic was set up at a village school just 10 minutes drive and despite its proximity to Kathmandu, the elevation of 1,650m meant that the patients had little access to dental care unless they were willing to travel to the city.

As with the first, the figures from Jurethum were just as impressive. It was a slightly smaller group and visits were interrupted by heavy rains, but on average each student screened 7 people and treated 6 per day. As with Bidhur, the majority of referrals (the bulk of those screened needed treatment) returned for treatment.

Working in Dhampus

The third and fourth camps were back in the Pokhara Valley, with the first set up in Dhampus. This one was possibly the most ambitious out of the four projects as reaching the project location involved a three to five hours trek (depending on individual fitness)! But with an enthusiastic group of student dentists, I can report that we were able to transport all the equipment and set up camp. Quite a challenging environment to work and something completely new for the students. The project is going on as I type and I’m getting daily progress reports of the busy clinic work. It seems patients often require several appointments as there are so many problems with their teeth.

Since Dhampus is a remote village, our student dentists and staff are accommodated in a fairly simple lodge with basic facilities. But what makes this lodge special is the landlady who runs the guesthouse – she’s the head of the village’s Mother Union and she’s keen to make all our participants feel very much at home in the mountain. Sunil has reported that she has organised a performance for our students later this week!

The last dental outreach project is scheduled to start in just under 10 days. It’s in a village called Bhaduare, another hilltop settlement inhabited by mixed Nepalese communities, otherwise known as Gurung, Dalit, Bishwo Karma and Brahmin people. There are no dental clinics near Bhadaure so our temporary clinic will be set up at the village hall. The accommodation will be at the Holiness Food and Guesthouse. It’s a fairly simple lodge, similar to Dhampus as the village is situated in a remote location. The guesthouse is in the heart of the village and within walking distance to the community hall, where the temporary clinic will be set up.

Nepal is certainly not short of villages that can really benefit from our outreach projects and we’ll update you on the progress of the last two projects as soon as we get the figures in. We will also keep you posted about our plans for next year… we have some exciting ideas and also some potential new locations, so watch this space!

Students on safari

As much as we try and prepare you for your time overseas, there are some things that you simply won’t know until you get there.  As well as the immediate contrast in clinical practice, each destination we offer provides a fascinating cultural experience so this week we asked the students what they have learnt.  We asked them “What is your favourite in-country fact?!”

In Arusha, Lucy learnt that “Fluoride in the water here causes the yellow stains on the teeth.  Before coming to Africa I thought this was caused by tobacco”

Nicola said that “Going on safari was the best experience!  So far my favourite African fact is ‘The Serengeti is the same size as Holland’ as quoted from a maasai warrior”

On the clinical side, Helen told us that “Patients have to pay an admission fee at Mount Meru, but then they get all treatment they need and HIV medication is free” with Rachael adding that “The consultants get paid a 1/3 of what we get paid as an intern, which is pretty terrible and offers no surprises as to why they leave”

Helen and Jemima found it funny that “Poa kichizi kama ndizi ndani ya friji – is a normal response to the greeting ‘mambo’ – this means cool like banana in a fridge!”

On the subject of language, Nicola told us that “Tanzanians are very respectful of their elders and their language reflects this. They use “shikamoo” to greet their elders as opposed to “mambo”

Work the World staff in front of a typical studded door

In Dar es Salaam many people call me a “bonge” (big) which is meant as a compliment!  But my favourite word of the week is “umependeza” which means beautiful.  I also like it that white people are called “mzungu” said Zoe

Esme did the Village Experience and discovered that “tribes have two rooms for wives in their huts – one for the junior wife, one for the senior wife!”

Clare noticed that “in stone town you will see a lot of carved and gold studded doors.  If you visit the House of Wonders you will learn that this was a way of demonstrating wealth despite the rest of the house being less desirable. The doors started off being flat topped but with the arrival of the Indians came arched tops and studs to ward off elephants.”

According to Joe, our Programme Manager, “we have got quite a jovial lot in Ghana at the moment and this question sparked off laughter around the dinner table!  It was mostly from Hilary who hadn’t done any research into Ghana and therefore could not tell us anything but ended up seconding every confirmed fact by the other five students.  With a smile they all admitted that Ghana is definitely the gateway to Africa. “The people are so friendly, even at the hospital”.  Ghanaians are very friendly and are always willing to help!

The busy streets of Pokhara

Anthony took the floor saying “…I heard that it is safe and peaceful here…” and that is exactly how they see it now.  Catherine mentioned that the hot temperature was a definite fact.  Malaria is the most common disease and the health facilities are under resourced.  Everyone had heard this before coming including Hilary!”

Sunil, the Programme Manager for Nepal had the students talking traffic!  “Anna had heard a lot about the driving and traffic rules, how chaotic it is in Nepal. She always thought that Nepal didn’t have a proper traffic rule, but after coming here, she understands what all her friends were trying to say. Get on a bus or in a cab and see how it goes; it’s crazy with bikes everywhere, everyone overtaking everyone, cows crossing the street…”

We are quick to talk about the cultural differences but there are some surprising similarities too. This week we have asked the students “Have you noticed any similarities either on placement or locally?”

We’ll see you back here next week for the answers!

Learning how to make Empanadas

Now try another…… “Tiene cancer, que come Usted sabe, es una enfermedad dificil pero se puede tratar”. A bit more tricky, but there are a couple of words that could be guessed……..

The point is that Spanish is not an insurmountable hurdle, it’s a challenge. And although many students think working in an under developed hospital is difficult enough, if we had a glass of fruity malbec for every person that discounted a placement in Argentina because they don’t feel they have the time to learn Spanish, or won’t learn it to a high enough standard to work in a Spanish hospital environment,  we’d be a very merry office indeed!

It’s no great surprise that Argentina appeals to most of our students, and who could blame them? It’s completely different to our other destinations and as you scroll down our Mendoza page you can almost see the beautiful mountains and fast flowing rivers around you. Taste buds start to tingle at the mention of tender steak and romance floods your veins as you imagine dancing the sultry tango. It’s an amazing place and a dream destination for your placement….or is it?  Right there on the page it says “a good level of Spanish is needed”…….. the sighs are audible. And they shouldn’t be!

We won’t hide from the fact that a placement in a less developed country can be tough, and learning a language on top of that is definitely a challenge, but as the heading of this article proves, Spanish can be an easy language to pick up. The grammar is simple to understand, your vocabularly increases spectacularly when you realise many English words require just a small change to their ending to work in Spanish and the written language is almost phoenetic.

Learning Spanish at the Work the World house

What worries most of our students is that you need more than just “holiday Spanish” to get by. Medical terminology is complicated and discussing symptoms and treatments in Spanish could lead to massive confusion and worrying mistakes. Has anyone been on a standard evening class that covers what instruments to pass in surgery or  how to understand a patient brought in after a road traffic accident?!

Well don’t hit the panic button just yet. Work the World understand how important it is that you can communicate with staff and patients, so we’ve set up our own language course at the house. The add-on is available to all students and whilst it has all the fun and frolics of learning in-country with market visits, tango classes, empanada baking etc, the structure essentially allows you to progress from basic Spanish to medical Spanish in just a week. It is a unique course only available to our students, and sets you up not just for your time in Argentina, but for your future. It’s also the most economical way to learn the language – considerably less than taking private medical spanish lessons at home.

Amanda, one of our previous Spanish students “was really worried about working in a totally Spanish environment. I’d taken evening classes at my local college but still felt like I only had a basic grasp. After a few days living in country though, I was out and about talking to locals, it all made complete sense. Then Clara began to teach us Spanish that was tailored to our placements. I’m a nurse and so she focussed on paediatrics as that was where I would be for three weeks. She had an amazing understanding of what would be required and everything I asked her she was able to help me with. I felt confident to ask questions on my first day on the ward, work out what the staff and patients were telling me and follow the rounds. My understanding grew with each day I worked and it was amazing knowing that I could do my job in an entirely foreign environment “.

Don’t think of Spanish as a reason not to go to Argentina. Think of our Intensive Spanish Course as a way to enhance your skills in the way a placement will.  Who knows where it will take you, but it is bound to be emocionante!

Negombo beach

The first thing I noticed when I arrived in Sri Lanka was the ease at which I passed through the airport! After my travels to Africa, I was expecting a lot of hassle, taxi drivers grabbing my bags and vying for my custom. Colombo was really very civilised in comparison! It was a breeze, with taxi companies allowing me to approach them for quotes into the city. Sri Lanka is 5.5hrs ahead of the UK and most flights arrive into Sri Lanka at 8.30 in the morning. This means that the first day is normally spent trying to get your head round the time difference and trying not to fall asleep as your body thinks it is in fact 3am!

I joined Kavinda, the Programme Manager in Sri Lanka for a student pick-up the next day. We met Linzie at the airport and then headed to the beach to chill out after the night flight she’d had to endure. Negombo is a quiet, beach town with a backpacker vibe that consists of a main shopping street selling local craft work (leather goods and wood carvings), numerous restaurants and a beach. The locals are all really friendly, it’s a great introduction to Sri Lanka as it’s much quieter than Colombo and hints at the fantastic beach opportunities that are available on the island.  Negombo has a real community feel to it with a good fish market on the beach and loads of locals playing cricket.

We had an early start the next day as we took the 7am train to Kandy. The journey was amazingly beautiful, taking us up through the hills and through various villages and tea plantations. Kavinda had managed to organise some tickets in the Observation Carriage which, as Sri Lankan trains go, offered a pretty comfortable ride! From the station we had our first ride on a tuk-tuk up to the WTW house. It was a crazy journey, steep and windy, stony roads up into the hills that overlook Kandy. Kavinda has formed good relationships with a number of tuk-tuk drivers and our one, Saman, had a good idea about why we were there; pointing out the hospital and places of interest as we passed. The Work the World house in Sri Lanka is a big, newly built, modern building with fantastic views over the city and surrounding country. The bedrooms are all spacious with shiny, ensuite bathrooms (one with a Jacuzzi bath!)

The Sri Lanka team

After we had settled and unpacked, Kavinda took us into Kandy for the orientation. Kandy is extremely easy to navigate your way around with the clock tower and KFC as popular, well known land-marks. From the clock tower there are three main streets where you will find the banks, internet cafes and pubs… Despite its city status it feels pretty small and from the centre you can walk to many of the main attractions including the Temple of the Tooth and various Ayurvedic spas. Kandy was also a lot more modern than I was expecting, with the main bank in a mall that also housed tea rooms and juice bars. Saying that, the streets are buzzing with tuk-tuks and street vendors plus the occasional one-eyed accordion player and snake charmer! The lake is the centre point of the city. It was smaller than I imagined and you could walk round it in about half an hour. Surrounding the lake are various temples and hotels offering Ayurvedic treatments and the use of their swimming pools.

The hospital orientation was done the next day. Linzie was lucky enough to get stuck in immediately, scrubbing up and assisting in some Obs and Gynae surgery. Linzie’s supervisor, Dr.K.Gunawardana has a fierce reputation within the hospital for working his students hard and really encouraging them to ask questions and make decisions. Linzie got on really well with him and she said that by the end of her shift they were joking together and excitedly making plans for the next day!

The hospital itself is huge, spread out with many different buildings and departments. It was clean and organised and the staff there were obviously very proud of the place but like most hospitals in developing countries, it was a bit gloomy and overcrowded with bedding and food being brought in by the family.

I then met up with Kavinda and Linzie in the evening to see some traditional Sri Lankan dancing at the YMBA. The dancers here put on a show every night, showcasing local folk dancing, drumming, acrobatics, stories and fire walking. All of the students go and see this show and it’s a really fun way of getting a fix of Sri Lankan culture. Kavinda then took us to Kandy’s only pub for dinner where we were met by the other students who had been off to the beach for the weekend and had some travelling stories to tell and tans to show off!

We took an early bus to Habarana the next day which took us through village after village where we really got to see Sri Lankan life in full swing.  It’s an incredibly cheap way to travel and really quite comfortable (unless an old lady happens to fall asleep on your shoulder)

Habarana is full of Ayurvedic retreats and eco lodges and there is quite a lot of fun stuff to do. There are a number of companies organising elephant safaris and trips out to Minneriya and Kaudulla national parks plus boat rides out to more rural locations.  From Habarana we took a tuktuk to Horiwila to visit the Ayurvedic Hospital.

The Ayurvedic Doctor

The hospital is in a stunning location, off the beaten track and set amongst some lush forest. The doctor himself is fantastic, super friendly and wanting to pass on his knowledge and teachings. It is quite small with only 20 beds which were all full. Although the doctor has help from a few nurses and assistants, he gets heavily involved with each patient and he talked me through what was wrong with them all; from a head ache to a bad back to a broken leg. The doctor is highly respected, so much so that patients took off their shoes before meeting him.  Ayurvedic medicine has been in the doctor’s family for 30 generations and he is very proud of this. He doesn’t charge for treatments but he does ask for a donation which means that patients are able to just pay what they can afford; which is why he is so busy.

After our visit to the hospital, Kavinda and I went on the tuktuk to the Other Lodge which is about a 20min drive away. We will be hiring some bicycles for those of you who do the Ayurvedic Medicine Experience to use to get to work; the roads are safe and quiet with just the odd tuktuk buzzing along. The Other Lodge is gorgeous! It’s again set amongst the trees in a little clearing near the lake. It’s so peaceful and they have their own elephant!

We finished up here at around 4pm so zoomed up to Sigiriya to do the famous climb. I would really recommend doing this to anyone; it’s often been described as the eighth wonder of the world due to the architectural feat of building a palace on top! It was quite a climb but well worth it due to the jaw dropping views from the top. We finished the day with a 2.5hr drive back to Kandy in a suped up tuktuk with disco lights in the back, blasting out Sinhalese pop. There were no buses or taxi’s. It was pouring down with rain and mega scary.

I spent my last day in Colombo . The city has a fantastic colonial feel to it, with the old fort and rusty trains. There are also some fab markets to be explored, a great museum and some gorgeous temples to visit.

The next day took me to Nepal.

The scenic flight to Pokhara

I finally made it to the Kathmandu Guesthouse at about 5pm after the long queues in immigration and baggage collection. I immediately got the impression that Kathmandu was crazy, amazing and exhausting. The main centre of the city is a labyrinth of winding alley’s and shops with a similar vibe to the Khao San Rd in Bangkok; though there were millions of motorcycles bombing it through the streets rather than the tuktuks of Thailand.

The flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara takes you on an awesome, scenic flight through the Himalayas in the best light of the day. Sunil, our Programme Manager in Nepal met me at the airport and whisked me off in a taxi to the house where the cook, Krishna made me some chai and an omelette and then we were off to work!

First stop was Manipal, a large private hospital which is either a 15 minute tuktuk ride or 30 minute walk from the house. My first impression of Manipal was how imposing it was. It’s a huge, grand building on the outskirts of the city. The hospital was slightly better facilitated than the other hospitals; they get quite a bit of funding from India so the equipment is slightly more modern and resources more available. Still, you can see the conditions are still quite basic, though on the surface, cleaner and shinier than the other hospitals.

Western Regional was next on the list, a 20 minute walk from the house. The wards were very basic here and you could really see the poverty that affects the country.  The wards were all open, sometimes with a curtain across the front. The hospital itself felt very big but easy to navigate and it was a hive of activity with patients, doctors, nurses and cleaners all with their heads down doing the best they could with the limited resources.

Green Pastures

Green Pastures is a 40 minute walk from the house. It is a bit out of the city in peaceful grounds with a really pretty garden. Although small, the wards were busy and all of the patients were really accommodating and chatty! Green Pastures is perfect for a split placement, offering a smaller, close knit team and working environment.

In the evening I finally got to experience the famous Busy Bees Bar with its own resident rock band and potent cocktails. Bryan Adams was playing a gig the night after in Kathmandu so everyone was very excited and the band treated us to a few Bryan covers.

The next day was Saturday so much of Pokhara shut down. Still, we awoke at 5am in time for the sunrise trek to Sarangkot. It was simply stunning watching the city wake up and the sunshine spread across the Himalayas. Pokhara doesn’t feel like a city and everywhere is within walking distance. The main tourist hub is Lakeside, on the shores of Phewa Tal. Lakeside is a colourful shopping and restaurant area with an almost village feel as it is separated from the rest of Pokhara. It almost has the same vibe as Kathmandu, with lots if travellers looking for bargains and a bite to eat… the shops sell all kinds of things from prayer flags and hippy pants to wooden masks and Nepalese paintings. There are other touristy things to do around here like yoga classes, Japanese hot baths (watching the sunset!) and various Ayruvedic spas. The actual lake side is quite sedate and peaceful where you can take rowing boats and pedalos out for the day. Sunil and I hired one for a few hours and pedalled it over to the other side to trek up and see the Peace Pagoda.

The Work the World house is very central and the main shopping area for locals is located just at the end of the road, as is the bus station and main tuktuk stop for getting to the hospital and Lakeside. I loved central Pokhara with all the fruit and vegetable stalls and fabric shops. The Nepalese people are so friendly and also very nosy, asking; what’s your name, where are you from, where are you going, are you married, how many children do you have etc… Everywhere in Pokhara felt extremely safe, even though you do get the usual tuktuk drivers and taxi drivers trying to overcharge you for every journey… All of this under the spectacular Mt Machhapuchhare!

As well as the lake and the treks you can do, there are also a number of temples to visit and Tibetan refugee camps where you will find fantastic shrines and chanting.

The team in Nepal

Sunil also took me to Bandipur where the Dental Outreach was located last summer. We caught a local bus from town which took 3 hours and dropped us in Dumre where we caught a jeep up the mountain.  The journey felt very long and windy, particularly when they piled 20+ people into and on top of the jeep and a lovely Nepali woman vomited on my shoe!

Bandipur is a fantastic little town that feels like it has got stuck in time. The locals are behind the drive of tourism there as they strive to keep hold of their Newari culture. It is very quiet with just a few guesthouses and restaurants and I can see how an outreach project can work well here as it is such a close knit community and there are two schools and no easy access to healthcare.

On our return from Bandipur I hung out with Krishna and Padma, the housekeeper who are absolutely lovely! They don’t speak a huge amount of English but knew a few words and I have a feeling they’ll both pick up a lot when everyone starts arriving this summer.

I absolutely loved Asia, it’s such a beautiful part of the world and I was in constant awe of the beauty of the place and the people who live there. I can’t wait to get back out there!

Prize: £250

Graham's winning picture

Again we have had some amazing entries for this year’s competition, but we all agreed that the image that captured the spirit of living in another country was Graham Stevenson’s shot of the wildebeest migration at sunrise.

When we called Graham he had this to say “Corking stuff! I’m delighted people liked the shot. The equatorial sun rises so quickly there are only about 2 or 3 minutes to enjoy that kind of light in the Serengeti, though I feel a bit guilty to have spent it looking through a camera lens. The annual wildebeest migration is a staggering phenomenon and going on safari during my placement in Tanzania I was desperate to see the animals en masse. The picture was taken at about 06.20 in the morning. It was horribly cold. But there the beasts were: from a distance – hump-backed, anonymous creatures, lurching along the same path, at the same rate and rhythm they’d been travelling the evening before. And then we moved in closer….”

Work the World Director Omar thought Graham’s photo stood out from the competition. “The dust thrown up by the wildebeest’s hooves instantly capture the essence of the Serengeti plains when the millions of wildebeest begin their migration. The composition of this shot is fantastic, and the light really adds to the atmosphere.”

Congratulations Graham, you are a very worthy winner of our £250 Big Picture prize.

Destination Category

Maxwell's image of India

Winner: Maxwell Charles

Prize: £100

Max has really captured the lively nature of the Southern Indian people, and this shot of an Indian dancer applying his makeup is a great mix of colour, character and spirit.

Max told us that “India is an amazing country that moves at an incredible pace. Opportunities can pass you by unless you enjoy the little moments and details that only such a culturally diverse place can give. I loved getting the opportunity to witness, work and live in such a unique and beautiful place during my placement. My advice is don’t just look for the big attractions, enjoy everything on offer and try things at least once. The trip to the theatre was very memorable, watching the dancers spend hours carefully applying their make-up, whilst getting to share a cup of chai or two. If I hadn’t gone and spent time with the performers, I would have missed a piece of Keralan culture as well as a good photo.

We felt that this picture deserved the prize because “it’s really natural. You really get a sense of  what it is like away from the tourist trails”.

Congratulations Max – you take home the £100 prize.

Placements Category Winner

Mutaka's Nepal Dental Outreach

Winner: Muntaka Shah

Prize: £100

Muntaka’s shot of the Dental Outreach Project in Nepal was our favourite placement shot.  The setting really conveys the work space and environment of the temporary dental clinics. Elective students get a huge amount of hands-on experience doing these projects as they are essentially running the treatment station and performing all clinical procedures.

Muntaka said “I had an amazing experience on my dental community outreach project in the summer of 2010. We had the privilege of volunteering in a breathtaking part of the world amongst absolutely wonderful people. We learned a lot about dentistry, people, and ourselves while volunteering in Pachabhaiyya, a rural community nestled in the Himalayas near Pokhara, Nepal. In a challenging clinic setting with limited resources and the chance to serve an entire community, we connected to our profession in a way that only an international health care experience can provide.”

Omar said “we chose this image because we felt that it summed up what it can be like to work in Nepal. Providing care to patients with the most limited of resources is all part of the Work the World experience. This makeshift treatment area is typical of the Dental Outreach projects”.

Congratulations Muntaka – you take home the prize of £100!

Well done to everyone that took part. We had some amazing images and it was really hard to make decisions on the winners.

For those that did not get the prize, keep an eye on our site as we will do our best to get your images posted. We may also be launching a new competition for 2011 – sign up to our blog for first details!

Some of the kids

This year’s Dental Outreach Programme in Ghana took place in Jacobu within the Ashanti region of Ghana. It was about an hour’s drive south of Kumasi, which is the second largest city in Ghana and famous for its markets. The project spanned 3 weeks and consisted of seven 4th year dental students as well as (and for the first time ever for us) 5 dental hygienists. All the participants were studying or had finished studying at Cork and were therefore full of Irish vigour and energy!

The project was designed to provide free screenings and treatments to the school children of the local area. We had a bus and each day it would take us to the schools where the screenings were carried out and then bring those children that had been referred to the local St Peters Hospital for treatment. The screening process was immense! Just short of 4,500 children were screened during the project. We were privileged to have the dental hygienists during the screening process, they worked to provide education (of course with translators!) to all of those children that were screened by the dental students. This will enable the good work that took place to carry on after we left so that the children understand the importance of effective oral cleaning.

Screenings

Just short of 1,000 children were treated during the 3 weeks, the participants on the programme worked extremely well together to ensure that this work ran as smoothly as possible. Each day someone would volunteer to play the role of Matron and be responsible for providing assistance when needed to those carrying out the treatment work and to grab supplies and tools. The dental hygienists were predominantly responsible for carrying the scaling work whilst the dental students took care of the extractions and fillings. We were fortunate to be working with Dr Amoateng, who is the head dental consultant at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi as well as his two dental assistants Hanna and Felicia as they provided excellent clinical supervision and assistance.

Outside of the clinical work we all got to do some exploring of Ghana in our spare time. The dental students managed to get to Mole National Park, which is no mean feat due to the distance involved, although they weren’t impressed that their driver took a wrong turn and an 8 hour journey turned into 11 hours! The dental hygienists managed to make it to the coast and also to stay at a hotel with a swimming pool in Kumasi. I myself visited Lake Bosumtwi and had an afternoon on a hammock gazing out over the still waters. Kumasi was definitely the place to buy any present for people back at home.

Oral health workshop

The food was prepared by a caterer “Aunty Dokas”, who we recruited specifically for the project and who has worked with us before with our permanent programme in Takoradi. She provided continental food like spaghetti bolognese, chicken curries and a even some BBQ’s. We also requested to try some local dishes, some of which were more popular than others! “Red Red”, which is fried plantain, spices and a bean and tomato sauce was lovely.

It was an intense and thoroughly rewarding experience. Some other highlights that come to mind from the project were a local TV station coming over and interviewing us about the project, we later found out it was on TV 6 days later! The dental hygienists met Mr P.V Obeng, one of the most senior ranking government officials in Ghana and spending sometime having drinks with him! Also, going to mass in a local church was amazing- the Ghanaians love to sing and dance and we were welcomed with open arms. Finally, some of the girls managed to get invited to be in a Nigerian music video and were filmed for it, although I’ll need to wait to see it out live before I truly believe it as I wasn’t there at that point and the girls might be pulling my leg!

For those of you that need reminding, the video competition was launched last year and we had a huge response from people desperate to tell us why taking part in a project like this could benefit their dentistry studies, and why they should be the ones to win the prize. Fiona’s winning movie can be viewed on the facebook groups, or via this link to our youtube page.

With just two weeks to go, we asked Fiona to let us know how she was getting on with preparations for the trip of a lifetime…

Fiona’s blog…… Leaving on a jetplane!

Fiona is packed and ready to go!

I’m all packed up and ready to go….well, not quite, but with just two weeks to go until I leave I am nearly sorted.  Visas, insurance, indemnity, flights, vaccinations….it’s been a bit hectic trying to get everything ready in time, especially during exams, but now all the major jobs are out of the way it’s time to do the fun stuff – shopping!!

I spent a small fortune in the travel section of Boots this weekend, but now, armed with DEET, suncream, immodium and bite cream I feel reasonably well prepared.  I also bought a Kerala travel guide, as if I wasn’t already excited enough, which has definitely whet my appetite for what I might see/do on the weekend!

Next stop is a clothes shop, as my usual summer wear consists of jeans when it’s cold and shorts when it’s hot, neither of which are perhaps appropriate for Kerala’s hot weather and conservative outlook!  I just hope all this stuff fits in my rucksack…..

Finally (but probably most importantly!) I have been giving some thought to the clinical placement itself.  I am really looking forward to meeting the other students on the project, and while it’s sure to be a bit of a steep learning curve trying to overcome language barriers and adapt to a whole new climate and culture, on top of performing good clinical work, I’m sure it’ll be a fantastic learning experience.  I’m sure I’ll learn patience and adaptablilty if nothing else!  I’m hoping to improve my clinical skills too, and maybe learn a few words of Malayalam. Wish me luck!

To hear more about Fiona’s experience, watch this space for updates. You can also keep an eye on how we are doing across all of our 2010 dental outreach programmes with our “latest figures” box on the homepage. It amalgamates the figures from all eight of the projects as they happen. With the first India and Nepal projects underway already, the stats are already proving to be pretty impressive.

Fiona will also be putting her camera skills to good use, making a film of her time in India. We shall publish that on our site when she returns to the UK.

Good luck Fiona!

Today’s news suggests that researchers have found regular coffee drinkers were 39 per cent less likely to develop oral and pharynx cancers than those who didn’t drink coffee.

Coffee prevents oral cancer!

In a moment of celebrating the mighty coffee bean, the Telegraph have linked their article to another about how coffee reduces the rate of heart disease. The research team studied tea and coffee consumption among 37,514 people, and followed the participants for 13 years to monitor heart disease and death. Those who drink between three and six cups were 45 per cent less likely to suffer coronary problems compared to people who had less than one cup dail. The researchers believe that the health benefits are down to antioxidants found in both drinks which remove damaging free radicals from the body.

The first question…..who can we work with?

The Ashanti region suffers from some of the worst dental care in Ghana

Every year we work with a partner to deliver the dental project – it is important as we must have experienced professionals to supervise and teach the students. We can also rely on their extensive knowledge of dentistry in Ghana  and the problems that rural villagers face. This year, after a long discussion with dental health professionals here and also the team in the UK, we decided to approach Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital(KATH), the regional hospital that serves the whole of Ashanti region. I began the project research with a trip to Kumasi to meet our key contact, Dr. Karikari (the immediate former Chief Executive of the Hospital). I have to say that journeying through the countryside for four hours from Takoradi to Kumasi went very quickly – it was more of brainstorming moment than a scenic drive as there was SO much to think about!

When I reached Kumasi I met with Dr. Karikari and Dr. Amoateng, who is head of the dental department and regional coordinator for Ashanti region. After a simple presentation on the outreach proposal, they jumped on board without many questions. Apparently they had already conducted research about the oral health condition in the region, and were alarmed by the prevalence of oral disease.  To give you an example of how bad things are, their survey showed that the 27 districts in the region were top of the chart across the whole of Ghana for this problem! As is often the case in Ghana, a major reason for this is the lack of dental health care to deal with the problem, so our proposal for a 2010 dental outreach programme was a timely opportunity for them to act on the findings of their research. They are also keen to work with our students to help them gain hands on experience of the dental problems in Ghana.

Deciding on a destination…

Finding a project base can be difficult

I couldn’t have expected any better reception from KATH, and immediately we started to discuss the location of the project. Using their research, we began with a few key districts they had highlighted as suffering from a lack of dental care, namely Bosotwe or Amansie Central district.  For us at Work the World, the location also has to provide some other main areas. Because the project is only for a short period, we need to have an adequate number of local schools that want to participate, a project base and somewhere for our students to stay for the duration of the project. It is my job to make sure that the location fits all these criteria, and it can be very difficult. Not wanting to fall victim of an arm chair research, I employed the services of a taxi to tour these villages and spent time lookingh around the. Before sunset that day I was confident that Jacobu was the best place for us.

Looking out for a local health facility in Jacobu was actually not as much of a headache as I had expected. In the past we have had to bring mobile clinics etc because there is nothing at the village, but in Jacobu there is a well resourced catholic hospital that we can use as our clinical base. It serves all the 200 villages in the district – treating the major medical conditions such as malaria, anaemia, pneumonia, diarrhoea, and complications of pregnancies. The hospital has an out patients clinic, two consulting rooms, injection room, pharmacy and 80 beds. Amazingly it has a newly set up dental unit, but this has never been used by the public since the establishment of the hospital in 1968. This is because there is no dentist in the hospital – whether this is because the dental staffs are not willing to stay in the village or simply a case of Ghana not having enough dentists to move to such villages where the people can not even afford the luxury of such services, we do not know. I feel it is the latter because the leadership of the health centre was very welcoming and thinks that running an outreach from his facility will provide a good opportunity to launch it properly. It was a great feeling to think that even before the commencement of 2010 dental outreach, it is already imparting positively on the people and authorities in the locality.

Barbecue night will come with us to Jacobu!

Accommodation for the team is one factor worth stressing on. Jacobu does not have many guest houses, but I did find one that stood out from the rest. It is in a safe environment, five minutes from the clinical base and has self contained rooms with their own toilets and baths. It was also nice and cool, with tiled floors and fans – it will be a good place for students to relax after the project. There is also a bar there so the students can get themselves a beer! Lewis tells me that the students often like to go to the local bars though, which I know is true at the Work the World house, so I was pleased to find  a bar a few doors away where they can meet local people.  I am sure the students will have lots of fun there!

And for those who love quality food, an arrangement has been made to engage the services of a professional caterer to prepare finger licking local dishes.  Aunt Dorcas, who usually cooks in the Work the world house when Ophelia is not available, will prepare quality local dish for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Just as is done in the WTW house every Wednesday, students will enjoy a BBQ and enjoy a night of local Ghanaian music and dancing.

A bit more about Jacobu…

I shall tell you a little bit more about Jacobu now, to give you the picture of the village. It is forty five minutes drive west of Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city, and four and half hours drive from Accra, the national capital. It is the district capital of Amansie Central which has a population of about 81,000 with 23, 000 pupil and covers an area about 274.1sq m. It has low level lands but not without the red soil hills creating valleys within. It is very beautiful and if you climb up one of the hills you can look out on the whole village surrounded with green vegetation. Most of the villagers work around the area in farming or small trading and by nature they are very friendly and welcoming.  Twi is the language widely spoken in this part of the globe, which is different to Fante – the dialect spoken in Takoradi.  According to the survey conducted by the Komfo Anokye dental department, this area has the highest  prevalence rate of oral disease  in the region with periodontal forming about 40% percent of all cases. Common apart from this are carries, fractured teeth, retained teeth, hypoptasia and satisfactory. This health condition means students will have a lot to do!

Navigating the red tape…

The villages we will be working in

Now that I had decided on Jacobu, the next crucial stage was to dispatch letters and organise subsequent meetings with appropriate authorities to regularise the outreach proposal. With the help of Lewis, all letters were duly organised and personally submitted to the Directors of Health, Education and the Chief Executive of KATH for discussion. I felt confident as everyone so far has been very happy with our proposal, involving themselves at local level too. The SHEP co-ordinator (School health education programme) and the Disease Control officer are already looking at dissemination of information and awareness creation in the villages surrounding our base.

It did not take long for word to spread around the villages about our summer programme and so it was very important that we live up to the high expectations of the villagers and KATH. We cannot compromise on the quality of the clinical practice, so I met with with the chief dentist in Accra to discuss how we would regulate the two groups of students as they screen and treat patients. We must have two professionally qualified dentists to supervise the entire team, and with the assistance and support of Dr. Amoateng and Dr. Karikari, the chief supervisor agreed that she was happy for us to proceed.

So, with almost everyone on board it was just down to the Chief dentist in Ghana, Dr. Constance. We were all thrilled when she said that she liked the project and it was even more exciting when she said she will visit the project on the first day to have some interaction with students and to teach them how to achieve maximum result with the limited resources available here in Ghana. With her position, inspiring personality and the keen interest to always teach, her visit will obviously be an asset to the team.

And so finally I can go home….

After a busy few weeks in Jakobu and Kumasi it now all looks pretty much sorted. Everyone we need is on side, we have the assurance of logistical support and dental equipment from the Ministry of Health, the backing of KATH and St Peters hospital, lots of work being done to ensure that the schools are fully involved, the expectancy of the villagers themselves generating a buzz about the project, a place for students to call home…….everything is done! I can now have a nap in the bus on my way back to Takoradi safe in the knowledge that no stone has been left unturned!