Dental Hygiene student Bethanie Baird shares her experience of cleaning teeth in Nicaragua

Bethanie Baird, TCC Dental Hygiene student, visited Nicaragua this summer where she and other students cleaned patients' teeth. Below, she shares her experience with us.

After arriving in Managua, Nicaragua's capital city and the location of the airport, my first emotion was shock. Seeing so many buildings and homes with only two walls and dirt floors was so unthinkable to me. The massive amounts of trash and debris on the side of the roads were unbelievable. The most heartbreaking sight was the animals, or walking skeletons. I had never seen anything like this in my life. I admit, I was very nervous and I never thought I would survive a whole week there. After meeting our driver, Juan Pablo and the dentist we would be working alongside, Dr. Sampson, I soon realized the people were nothing as I expected.

My first experience cleaning teeth was that following day. I had seen pictures and a video of the working conditions prior to the trip, but it is nothing one can imagine until it is experienced firsthand. The patients sat in lawn chairs, and we stood either behind them, or we would squat beside them to see inside their mouths. We worked outside in the blistering heat, and after every patient we would have to wipe the sweat from our faces. The amount of decay and tartar these patients had was unbelievable, even on children as young as two. Some of the patients had never even owned a toothbrush, something we don't think about in the United States. We traveled to different cities and "sectors" as they are called, and after four days of cleaning teeth and applying fluoride to children, we counted approximately 360 patients we treated.  We also had the opportunity to visit a nutrition center -  this is where parents sent their children if they were malnourished and could not afford to feed them. I think we all left in tears that day. A total eye-opening experience.

These people were the kindest individuals I have ever met. They were so appreciative of our services to them and did not complain at all, even though they were in obvious pain. The procedures we performed on some patients would require local anesthesia in our clinic, and these patients did not have anything to numb them. They had a whole attitude of "my house is your house" and welcomed us everywhere with open arms.  I fell in love with the culture while I was down there. Family is very important to them, and they are so trusting of one another. It was amazing to me to see people who have so little, be so grateful and so proud of what they do have.  After spending a whole week without things I never thought I could live without (air conditioning, hot water, flushing toilets, technology), I started looking at things from a different perspective once I arrived back to the U.S. I wish everybody could have the opportunity to travel to Nicaragua and learn from the people and their way of life. 

Pictured above: Dental Hygiene students clean teeth in Nicaragua during summer 2012.

2012 Pick of the pics

Here are a few of my favorite pics from 2012. Look around and let me know your fav.

Parent and child in Nicaragua waiting to be seen by

TCC Nursing students.

Flowers soaking up the morning sun at
TCC's Northeast Campus in the spring.

Goose on the loose at TCC Southeast Campus.

High school FFA student at Northeast Campus

in her fashionable kicks.

TCC employees showing off their team spirit before making phone calls
 to encourage students to file for graduation.

Grads from TCC's Physical Therapy Assistant Program say "hi"
to a skeleton in the new PTA clinic.            

                           

A horse head at the Veterinary Technology Building
on the West Campus. Reminds me of a certain
scene in a certain film.....

I love this picture of the people in Nicaragua getting care
from TCC Dental Hygiene students. Students said even
though it was terribly hot, they had limited equipment,
and patients sat in lawn chairs, none of the patients complained.
Even though their teeth were severely neglected. Even the children. 

Reminds me of the holidays......

Update: TCC students also to premiere documentary Thursday

As I posted last week,  Professor Ed Taylor is showing a documentary on Thursday. I just learned that TCC students in Taylor's Documentary Filmmaking class will also show their documentary, "Cathedrals of Downtown Tulsa," making Thursday's event a Documentary Double Feature! This is a great opportunity to sit inside a comfy, air-conditioned building and learn more about our world and our awesome city!
When: 1 p.m. Thursday
Where: Event Space, Center for Creativity
Why: To learn about study abroad, service learning, documentary filmmaking, cathedrals in Tulsa, etc.