A journey of solidarity and smiles: Dental work in Sierra Leone

During the month of January, the volunteers of LAF Salone, together with Mireia Corral of the DESS team, travelled to Sierra Leone with the mission of improving the oral health of the local communities, offering dental treatments and promoting good oral hygiene practices. During this expedition, not only dental treatments were provided in hospitals and remote villages, but also oral health education was promoted.

Objectives of the trip: Improving Oral Health in Sierra Leone

Before embarking on this journey, the DESS and LAF Salone volunteers were clear about their main goal: to improve dental care in Sierra Leone. In this location, access to oral health care is extremely limited and most of its inhabitants do not have the opportunity to visit a dentist.
Based on this premise, the team set several goals:

• Providing dental care at health centres such as the Saint John of God Hospital in Mabesseneh and the Clarisas Missionary Sisters in Milla 91, offering essential dental treatment.
• Bringing dentistry closer to remote communities, where many people do not have the possibility to travel to a hospital, performing interventions directly in the villages.
• Conducting dental check-ups in schools, allowing early diagnosis of problems and referral of patients for necessary treatment.
• Training nursing students from the faculty of Mabesseneh, instructing them in oral hygiene so that they can transmit this knowledge to the community.

These were the basics of the expedition, but... what was it really like on the ground? In the following, we will share the learnings, challenges and achievements of this incredible experience.

Outcomes in dental care: Have LAF Salone's objectives been met?

Yes. Thanks to the donations made by DESS and other leading companies in the dental sector, such as SDI and Proclinic, it has been possible to provide good dental care in both hospitals, performing all types of extractions, treatments and dental hygiene. For example, thanks to the DESS toothbrushes, it has been possible to give good oral hygiene instructions to all the children in the schools, in addition to distributing a kit to each of them.

Challenges in dental treatment: Obstacles during expedition

During this expedition, some limitations have been detected. Outside the hospital environment, treatments are still limited to exodontia and pit and fissure sealing as a preventive method for caries formation, due to the lack of light. For future missions, it would be ideal to have a light generator to be able to carry out treatments and hygiene in the villages.

Silvia Clos, LAF Salone volunteer, says that for future expeditions they want to train nurses to perform oral hygiene, in addition to teaching prevention methods, such as maintaining good oral health. To this end, they want to design a good dental training programme.

Day by Day in Sierra Leone | DESS Dental and LAF Salone

The work of LAF Salone and DESS in Sierra Leone goes far beyond providing dental treatment. Each day is marked by commitment, dedication and a desire to improve the oral health of local communities, especially in areas where access to health services is limited or virtually non-existent.

To better understand what it's like to live this experience from the inside, we talked to LAF Salone and DESS volunteers. Here's what day-to-day life is really like on a mission of these characteristics:

Our day began at 8:00 a.m., having breakfast with the Clarisas Missionary Sisters to get the strength to start the day.

After breakfast, we spent the morning at the hospital's dental clinic, taking care of all the people who came there, and once we finished taking care of all the patients, we all met up to eat.

In the afternoon, depending on the day, we would go to the villages around our lodging in order to attend to those people who could not travel to the hospital, and thus try not to leave anyone without dental care.

Once all the patients in the village were finished, we returned home to have dinner with the missionaries and share with them how our day had gone, and then we went to rest to regain strength for the next day.

Material provided to the inhabitants of Sierra Leone by DESS Dental

The collaboration of DESS with LAF Salone was not limited only to oral health. In addition to providing basic materials to improve oral hygiene, such as toothbrushes, toothpaste and bars of soap, school and recreational materials for children were also provided.

The objective was to support both the health and educational development of the communities by providing resources that are difficult to access in some areas. School supplies included notebooks, pencils and other essentials for daily learning, while games and recreational materials provided entertainment for the little ones.

This material was distributed both in the villages visited and in the schools managed by the Clarisas Missionary Sisters, who play a key role in education and support to the local communities.

Conclusions and Expectations: Oral Health Outcomes

In general, the volunteers did not expect to find a country with such limited resources, but at the same time so generous. Although they started out with the idea of doing their bit in the field of oral health, especially in a specific area of Sierra Leone, they soon discovered that the needs went far beyond what they had envisaged. Despite dedicating many hours of work, they realized that more help was needed than expected, not only in dental treatment, but also in prevention and hygiene education.

Even so, the balance of the expedition has been positive. The volunteers are happy and satisfied with the work done, especially for having been able to help so many people who, at all times, showed their gratitude in a sincere and generous way.

Thanks and appreciation to LAF Salone and its team

The success of this mission would not have been possible without the unwavering commitment of LAF Salone and its team of volunteers. The NGO team has shown absolute dedication, facing difficult situations with admirable determination.

From the accompaniment and support provided by volunteers to the management of medical complications in children with infections, each effort has made a significant difference. Also noteworthy is the work of the Clarisas Missionary Sisters, whose tireless work on behalf of the women and children of the community has been fundamental in improving their living conditions.

To all of them, our sincere thanks for their efforts, generosity and commitment to oral health in Sierra Leone.

Future Directions: Next Steps in Dentistry in Sierra Leone

The experience in Sierra Leone has highlighted both the achievements made and the challenges still to be overcome. From this mission, the LAF Salone and DESS Dental volunteers have identified several areas to focus on for future expeditions.

One of the priorities will be to strengthen the training of local health professionals, especially nurses and assistants, so that they can carry out basic treatments and provide continuing education in dental hygiene. The idea is to train the community members themselves, so that they can provide regular and sustainable care in the long term.

In addition, it is planned to improve the technical conditions for future missions. The incorporation of a portable light generator will be key to expanding the type of treatments that can be performed in areas without access to electricity, allowing more complex interventions to be performed outside the hospital environment.

Another objective is to expand the distribution of educational and hygiene materials, ensuring that both schools and community centres have sufficient resources to maintain and reinforce healthy habits in the long term.

Finally, we seek to strengthen alliances with other organizations and companies in the dental sector that can contribute resources, specialized training and logistical support, thus consolidating a joint effort to broaden the scope of future missions.

Each expedition adds a new experience and learning, reinforcing the commitment to create a lasting impact on the oral health of local communities and consolidating a support network that ensures constant and sustainable care over time.