Yorkshire dental team to put a smile on faces in Africa

3 May 2014

A group of 3 Dentists and 4 Dental Nurses from Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust will be travelling to the city of Zomba in Malawi in May to support local healthcare staff in caring for the oral health of the local population.

The trip has been organised as part of the Trust’s long standing charity link with the city, which has previously seen nurses and doctors visit to offer equipment, training and treatment.

Dawn Barber, Team Leader, said: We are all really looking forward to our trip out to Zomba in May. It will be hard work, but we are relishing the opportunity to support the local dental staff there, as well as treating patients ourselves.

The Dentistry Department of Zomba Central Hospital is manned by one Dentist and six Dental Therapists. Each day they treat an average of 90 patients and during national oral health week they hold 7 Dental clinics/ camps to provide dental health education for children at orphanages and primary schools.

The dental staff in Zomba can really struggle to obtain equipment and supplies. Thanks to the generosity of supporters of the HDFT NHS Foundation Trust charitable fund along with donations from local dental practices and dental companies, the Yorkshire team will be taking a supply of materials and equipment with them.

The team from Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, who work in community dental surgeries across North Yorkshire, will be visiting Zomba from 12 to 23 May 2014. Each member of the team is taking annual leave for the trip to minimise its impact upon the provision of dental care within the service.

left to right – Sally Hattan – Associate Dental Director, Julie Moore (white shirt) – Senior Dental Nurse, Chris Batty- Senior Dental Nurse/Oral Health C0-ordinator, Alice Harding – Senior Dental Officer, Dawn Barber- Team Leader, Chloe Turner- Dental Nurse, Amy Hollis- Spr Paediatric Dentist

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