We arrived here in Jamaica four days ago. Once here we took about a 2 hour bus ride to the Sandals resort in Whitehouse Jamaica. That evening we had a meeting with the Great Shapes organization that founded project 1000 Smiles. There we got to meet the other volunteers and staff we’d be working with this week. We learned a lot about their culture and shared what our experiences are in the dental field. On Sunday we all met to sort through our supplies and then we all went to the clinics we’d be working at to set them up for the week. Monday was our first day to see patients. There are 4 separate clinics. The fist day was hot. We all started with the proper protective wear but by the end of the day all was gone except gloves, mask, and loupes. Thank goodness for loupes because there is no light available at the units and the chairs were not really adjustable. The days start early at 6 am, we are in our morning meeting by 715 am and off to our clinics by 8am. We are to stop work at four but with so many people waiting to be seen it was impossible for us to turn them away. Most of them were forming lines days prior to our arrival to be seen for free in our clinics. We want to see as many patients as possible and most days we didn’t stop work till after 6pm. The days were long and hot but it didn’t matter, we just wanted to provide care for as many as we could. Today I felt overwhelmed in clinic with a patient that came in for oral hygiene care. Once I did her evaluation I knew I had my work cut out for me. The patient had severe periodontal disease, loose teeth, and calculus was covering her teeth. We are to see each patient for 45 minutes to an hour, but I kept her in my chair for over an hour and a half. As I was working on her I wanted to cry because I felt like I was doing her a disservice knowing that I was not truly providing the care that she really needed. Her type of case would take several visits to complete here in America, and here I was trying to complete it in an hour. The patient was wonderful and I removed as much calculus as I possibly could. Once I finished the patient was so happy to be able to see her teeth again, but I on the other hand was feeling guilty knowing that I did not provide the best care for her. I had a talk with my teacher Mrs. Krueger and she reminded me that I provided care for a patient that would not normally have access to any dental services, that I did in fact help by removing as much bacteria as possible, and by giving her proper oral heath instructions to help the patient prevent any further oral problems. Jamaica is a beautiful country filled, where the people are full of life and love. The colors of their flag has great meaning, black is for the strength of the people, green is for the lush green landscapes they have, and gold (not yellow) is for the sunshine.
