Day 1
For our first day in Kashmir we travelled two hours to the remote village of Bhimper.
Prior to our arrival extensive notification had been given locally and regionally by advertisement and announcements at local mosques and community centres. 75 patients registered for this one day with 55 active intervention treatments. All patients received extensive oral hygiene instructions and preventative advice, with new toothpaste and toothbrushes.
Our team carried out treatments ranging from topical fluoride application, multiple tooth extractions, soft tissue excisions and incise and drainage of active swellings. This included a very large extra oral incision and drainage through skin for a very thankful patient.
One of the most important aspects of such missions is giving appropriate advice for issues that UK dentists see routinely, and may not themselves be aware of the distress it is causing patients. A very hard hitting example was of a 8 year old girl having Molar Incisor hypoplasia and being teased at school. The appropriate advice and reassurance was giving to both mother and child,and they were incredibly grateful for such simple information given,that we take for granted. Little actions like these may seem inconsequential to us,but all add to the rewards for us as volunteers and make a big difference to our patients health.
Our 5 man team will become our full compliment of 6 tomorrow with DAN regular Zohaib Khan joining us tomorrow. We will be at the Divisional Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital, Mir Pur, to set up our clinic and screening the children at Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust to arrange their appointments for treatment as necessary. At the DHQ we will be able to restore carious teeth as well as complete perio therapy for patients.
A warm thank you to our very kind hosts today at Rehmat Nawab Hospital and special thanks to Chairman Mohammad Ishaq for his excellent organisation and putting the whole hospital facility at our disposal.
Day 2
The team of 5 were split into two.
3 examined/screened all 320 children of Kashmir Orphans Relief Trust. All children had fluroide varnish applied, were given a toothbrush, toothpaste and a miswak. Each child was given tailored tooth brushing and diet advice. Those who needed treatment and who were in pain because of dental disease had specific treatment plans made and will have dental treatment at DHQ hospital Mirpur.
However many of the children were disease free, had excellent OH, had drastically improved over the 4 years due to their excellent implementation of the dental advice given, DANs continuity of case and KORTs implementation of oral health advice for their children.
The other half of the team with the help of the older children of KORT aided in cleaning and setting up the dental wing of DHQ hospital all ready for tomorrow.
DAN would like to thank the staff and especially the children for their amazing help as this would not have been smooth running without them.
All ready for tomorrow for a long clinical day!
Day 3
The DAN team had a fantastically productive and busy day providing essential dental treatment to the Orphans of KORT. In total, 71 patients were seen and treated, with treatment varying from Prevention, Restorations and Extractions. Despite some minor challenges, the team powered through, showing great enthusiasm and willingness to go above and beyond to provide care for our patients!
The day finished with a scrumptious meal at the KORT complex, prepared beautifully by the children of KORT. All in all, a brilliantly efficient day with immense work from the DAN team. Project Kashmir is in full swing and the team is energised for our next few days ahead!
Day 4
The DAN team have successfully completed treating all the remaining children from the orphanage. Collaborating together as a team we worked throughout the day undertaking a large amount of restorative treatment and minimal extractions. There is a positive transition towards reduced caries prevalence as children are more receptive to dental intervention over the last 4 years. In the evening we hosted a dental educational seminar at the Grand Regency Hotel. We had attracted multidisciplinary specialists, local dentists and had an overwhelming attendance from across the country.
We delivered clinical presentations covering array of topics including paediatric prevention, surgical endodontics, oral medicine, periodontal classification and teeth whitening. We have received excellent feedback and many requests to join DAN and fulfil its aims.
The DAN team visited a small remote village in the area on the outskirts of Mirpur called Jatlan, where the children had never seen a dentist ever. The team screened 200 plus children, applied fluoride varnish, provided toothbrushes, miswak and gave OHI with diet advice.
We also ran an extraction clinic for the children in the rooms provided by the local villagers. It was a challenging day with multiple obstacles however we powered through as a team and kept each other motivated.
Later in the evening the DAN team went for dinner and reflected on the week so far and discussed areas where they can move forward for the next DAN Kashmir trip.
Day 6
