Three years ago, Dr. Bruce Fong of
Rockridge Dental in North Oakland wanted to have a bonding experience with his
oldest son, Trevor. He got that, plus a lot more.
"I called the dental society,
and they turned me on to Kids International Dental Services (KIDS for short),
which provides pro bono dental care to impoverished children in developing
countries," he says. "But my original interest wasn't altruistic; I
was thinking about bonding with my son. Needless to say, that changed after we
arrived in Guatemala."
Working in the poorest villages and
slums, where access to even the most basic healthcare is nonexistent, he was
shocked by what he found.
"I did a few fillings, but
mostly I did extractions because the decay was so far gone there were abscesses
and infections and a lot of pain. Most of the extractions were the four front
teeth – two on the top and two on the bottom."
Why?
"Because the people are so poor,
they have a hard time affording food or water. But Coke and Pepsi are cheaper
than water, so they have plenty of that. The moms put the stuff in the baby
bottles, and the babies go to sleep with the bottle in their mouth. It doesn't
take long for their front teeth to rot."
One of Trevor's jobs was watching
the kids as they waited in line and making sure they didn't run away.
"When we'd get to those villages,
the kids would be lined up 200 to 300 kids deep because the mothers know
there's a need," says Fong. "But the kids still don't want to go.
Sometimes they have to be held down. When you have these teeth extracted,
they're not calm. They're screaming, as any two or three year old would do. It's
very wrenching."
The next year, Trevor's younger
brother Tristan joined them, and the same kids who were screaming the year
before gave them a hero's welcome.
"They were smiling and running
up to us and giving us big hugs. It was awesome because they remembered."
By the third year, the improvement
in the kids' dental health was remarkable. "We were doing more
restorations, more fluoride treatments, more fillings, and fewer extractions.
It was really cool."
In addition to Guatemala, KIDS sends
teams to Cambodia, Mongolia and the Philippines. The teams are comprised of
experienced dentists, young dental professionals and students, and
non-professionals like Trevor and Tristan, who provide support services.
KIDS operates entirely with
volunteer labor, and it has zero administrative overhead. Every penny it
receives provide care for a child.
If you'd like to help them bring
health and smiles to these kids, you can make a tax-deductible donation by
going on KIDS' website, www.kidservices.org,
or by sending a check to KIDS, 1400 22nd Avenue, San Francisco CA
94122. Please write Dr. Fong's name in the subject line.
Oh yeah: How did Trevor and Tristan
like the experience?
"They were super happy to be
there," he says. "For them, it wasn't just seeing that part of the
world and how great the need was. It was also being exposed to a group of
people who were like-minded and intent on helping other people. As they put it,
it was great to be part of a group that was 'so nice.'"
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