Tanzania Programme Manager, Ian Sinkinson, recently visited a government-run clinic in Lualaje, accompanied by the first-ever visiting dentist.
When the MAF plane arrived there were many people expecting to be seen by a doctor. The news about a dentist coming had been too late to spread to the communities; however, toothaches were so common that the patients for the doctor quickly became patients for the dentist.
With the only treatment available being extraction and limited amounts of anaesthetic to go around, everyone received the same dosage. It was apparent that for those with molars or wisdom teeth, the anaesthetic dose was inadequate.
Ian reflects, “I have never seen such pain, or such stoic acceptance of it, in my life. When it was over, when the dentist had used the last of his sterilised tools, even those who had suffered so much were so grateful. For them the short term agony was worth the relief from the months of toothache they would otherwise suffer.”
The dentist was able to perform twenty-two extractions in three hours and give a short teaching session on oral hygiene.