Dentists in Action

Since we teased our dentists in the previous blog, it time to make things right and show the reality of how hard the team works when they come to the clinic.  Here is short clip of what it takes for two dentists to work in one un-airconditioned room in Haiti, with the help of assistants and an interpreter.   Dr. Betsy  (on the left of the room) has a real dental chair with all the equipment to do restorative dental work.  She mainly sees children 14 years and younger.  On the right of the room is Dr. Larkin, who is working on adults, most of whom need to have extractions.   Assisting is Stacy and Mark, along with interpreter Johnson.  They all start early and don't quit until the sun has set.  They've had to deal with intermittent electricity, a shortage of supplies because most are still on a shipping container in Port-au-Prince, and even patients with extraordinarily high blood-pressure.  In the first three days they saw 82 patients, many of whom needed work on multiple abcessed teeth.  Out in the hallway are just a few of the patients waiting to be seen.  Most of the patients are on the back porch.