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“The mayor was
enthusiastic about
our project,” says Ben.
“He made sure we
were very welcome in
town. He even treated
us to the local
delicacy: barbecued
guinea pig.”
the team saw hundreds of patients while they were in Peru. in four days,
they saw more than 300 patients. “every person who came to our clinic
was examined by one of the faculty members, then was given oral hygiene
instructions by one of the students, and a toothbrush and a tube of
toothpaste,” says Ben. “most also got dental cleanings, and many got
fillings and/or extractions. each patient had careful charting done. While this
charting was not extensive, we did record names, ages, work needed and work
accomplished.”
the school of dental medicine donated a mobile operatory unit, as did another
student, who ultimately returned it to the United states. in addition to
Ben and nathan, 12 other students were at the clinic. Four faculty members
also worked at the clinic: T. Roma Jasinevicius, ’76, associate professor of
comprehensive care, lisa a. lang, associate professor and chair,
comprehensive care, Daniel Degesys, ’73, and Jerry Kolosionek, ’91.
according to Ben, “While Dr. [James] lalumandier associate professor and
chair, community dentistry] didn’t make the trip, he was instrumental in
finding a portable dental operatory unit for us and in finding the location.”
Lessons learned
according to Ben, “the amount of
work it took to organize a trip like
this surprised nathan and me. it
was so much more than just
planning for a vacation; it was
planning for the safety and wellbeing
of 20 people in a foreign
country who needed about 17
suitcases of equipment and a plan
to efficiently deliver effective dental
work to hundreds of people in a
short period of time.
“lamay is so remote. if we had
forgotten anything, such as etch or
mylar strips or air/water tips, we would have been done for,” he adds.
“everything had to be planned in advance. i was amazed at the staggering
amount of work that goes on behind the scenes of a humanitarian trip.
“this may sound cliche,” he says, “But it was all worth it when we started
actually doing the work for our patients. some were in tears after unsightly
decay on front teeth was removed. some were in tears because of a difficult
tooth we had to extract, but grateful nevertheless for the service we provided.”
His future practice
Left to right: Nathan Buckner, Lamay Mayor Guido
Alvarez, Ben Cope.
“Going through this experience has helped me be more open-minded about
dentistry and will probably influence me for the rest of my career,” says Ben.
“there is so much need for effective dentistry in the world, and although we
can’t do it all for everyone, we can make a difference for many people within
our circle of influence.
“While it’s true that we were able to help some very needy people, you don’t
have to fly to Peru to give service,” he says. “i will be happy to be involved with
humanitarian works in my own community.”
summer 2012 x 31