The dental mission trip was put on by the Christian Dental Society. 18 Dental students; 2 Dentists; 2 Dental Assistants attended. One of the dentists has 7 different clinics on the island and comes to the different clinics 4 times a year.
Living arrangements were 3 beach side villas and 1 non-beachfront villa(unfortunately for the 1st year dental students) a half a mile up the road.
From Monday-Thursday our daily routine was as follows:
Wake up-whenever
Brunch - 10:00am
Devotions - 10:50 am
Dental Clinic 11:00 - 6:00 pm
Dinner 7:00 pm
Do whatever - till you go to bed. (But for many of us we were too tired to do much of anything after dinner.)
When we got to the clinic the Pastor (the dental building was built as an addition to a church) would lead the morning in a prayer and then we would begin seeing patients. The pastor had a list of names of people that had come as early as 3:00am to get there and would read their names as we told her what we were ready for.
Each day we were assigned to either do Cleanings, Drilling & Fillings, Extractions, or Sterilization but by the end of the day, we all were doing extractions because there were so many people in need of them.
We had most of the supplies we generally use in a normal clinic, so these people had adequate anesthesia and we had adequate protection.
A couple of firsts for me:
- I got to extract some teeth (27 to be exact)
- I had the opportunity to do some dental surgery (if the root was the only thing left, we would have to go in and get it...)
- And thus got to learn how to do sutures for the first time.
- Being referred to as "Doctor" (probably because i am not yet a doctor, but it still felt good).
These people were so grateful! Even though some of the procedures were tough, they always left with a smile. Some of these people have had aches that have been bothering them for months or even years. We are the only dental help that are available to them.
One of the frustrations was understanding the language. Sometimes their accents would be so thick, I had to get one of the Dentists over to translate..."He says he wants a toothbrush"..."Oh"To help them understand us, we had to use some of their terminology. For example:
To say, i'm going to give you some anesthesia so that this doesn't hurt... would be -- "I'm gonna give you some cocaine so you're not hot."
Does it hurt or is it numb? -- Is it hot or is it heavy?
So what is bothering you today -- So what's been jukin' you now?
The last day at the clinic I brought out some magic for the kids that would usually come out to see us leave. They absolutely loved it!
The market - after everyone has gone home.
Our last day Friday was a free day. We all choose to go on a crocodile river excursion. Some of the locals took us on this exotic boat ride where WE ACTUALLY SAW CROCODILES!!!! At least I was excited about it.
Half way up the river, there was a place to rope swing in...we made sure there were no crocs around.
And afterward, we stopped in the ocean by a place called the Pelican Bar where we could come pretty close to where pelicans love to feed (sorry no pictures of that). We found some pretty cool stuff.
Now the important question that has yet to be addressed is:
HOW in the world did I go to Jamaica and not get burned or even any color at all?!?!?!?
Sacrifice... While everyone else was playing in the rays in the morning, I was relaxin' in the cabana. That and SPF 50 baby! It was either that or coming home a "Red Mexican." Which can be pretty painful... for me and for those who look at me (evidence from a previous experience).
It was an amazing experience. I hope to be able to do this after I have my own practice. That way I can bring my wife.
ONE LOVE, ONE HEART, LETS GET TOGETHER AND FEEL ALL RIGHT
-Bob Marley
5 comments:
Jason!!! That was amazing to see! Great post! That's not to say your wife doesnt provide great posts also, I'm just not a big "commenter" on blogs. Anyways, I loved it! I remember when Matt went to Chile. It's great work you guys are able to do for the less fortunate. I love reading about your little family, they are beautiful! Continued luck to you and yours!!! Alisa
Jason that looks like a great service you gave to those people. And Jodie you are a great wife for holding down the fort with 2 kids and supporting your hubby as he went off to Jamaica.
Jason, loved your blog. What a great experience! You look great (and white). Glad that you got to go and do this service. I'm so glad that you were smart with the sunscreen. You can always pick out a Gonzalez with that pure white skin. Funny. Glad you had such a great experience.
Awesome! What an adventure for you. I think next time your wife and I get to go to a tropical island. We can call it a "service" trip.
This post made me cry...remembering Jason the little boy, remembering serving those in need, seeing Jason in his new element. Amazing picture journal. I loved it! Sorry you did not get to go, Jodie. When you go back as a dentist, David & I want to go along as helpers.
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