Dentistry in the Clouds

I have just returned from another productive visit to Nepal.

A team of eight using three chairs worked at the Kopan Clinic during the first two weeks.

A wonderful young group of five women from the Happy Tooth group in the Hunter Valley,

combined with Dr. Tim from River Dental in Gympie and Hollie from W.A. to form a formidable team

at Kopan Monastery in Kathmandu.

The joyful group were nicknamed the 'tooth fairies' by the grateful monks who had never before had

their teeth professionally scaled by hygienists. The younger monks delighted in receiving balloons

after their treatment. The confidence in the quality of the treatment was at an all time high, which was reflected by the older timid nuns queuing in numbers for treatment.

The momentum and morale of the team was maintained by the gratitude of the many people treated. A roster was setup to enable the hard working members of the team to have days off.

The following week, two fresh faces, Dr John Denton and Jude Allsopp joined me on an inaugural trip

to Chialsa which has access to trekking trails. It was a 12 hour road trip from Kathmandu in a 4wheel drive jeep. The scenery at the Tibetan settlement was amazing above the clouds at 2700 metres above sea level.

Early one morning, 2 French trekkers were amazed to stumble across our clinic at such a remote location.

We treated over 70 patients, made up of 40 children from the settlement hostel and villagers, some who walked for 2 days to reach us. Most had never visited a dentist, and were in need of urgent treatment.

I have been deeply moved by the enthusiastic support of not only those who came for this and previous visits, but also by the continuing and increasing number of those offering to come.