Word of Mouth - School of Public Health and Community Medicine ...

Filling the GapThe dental volunteers give their time andexpertise providing one to two week blocks ofdental care, supported by staff from the dentalpractice. Some also bring their own equipmentor secure materials and equipment fromelsewhere. After talking it over with the DentalManager after arriving in Cairns, they mayalso decide to go out and work in the MobileDental Clinic, accompanied by a dental unit staffmember.Each dental volunteer must be eligible toregister in the state of Queensland to take partin the program, with the registration applicationprocess co-ordinated by the Dental Manager.Each dental volunteer must also haveprofessional indemnity insurance.Dental volunteers also contribute to promoting‘Filling the Gap’, not only through word ofmouth, but through providing testimonials andarticles to professional journals, other media andpotential sponsors and making presentationsabout the program at national and regional oralhealth conferences.Community and patientsA number of individuals and organisations havecontributed considerably to the program to date:• The management of the holiday unitsadjacent to Wuchopperen (husband and wifeteam) (The support involves pick up fromand travel to Cairns airport for visiting dentalvolunteers; and other practical assistancesuch as organising tours)• Professional organisations (Australian DentalAssociation NSW)• Donors (cash to cover costs such as airfares;in-kind donations of dental materials, websitedesign and promotion of program, programevaluation)• The dental patients themselves.Figure 1: Venn diagram showing the relationshipbetween program partners.WuchopperenCommunity &patientsSteeringCommitteeVolunteerDentists17