Our Dentistry Program is Facilitating Healthier Smiles in Guinea

Our program in partnership with Mercy Ships is bringing dental expertise to the community of Conakry, Guinea. Mercy Ships is a nonprofit organization that uses hospital ships to deliver free, world-class healthcare services, and sustainable development to under-privileged areas. World Telehealth Initiative and Mercy Ships are both focused on building the capacity of local healthcare providers to strengthen the community's health systems long term.

At the Gamal Dental school in Conakry, Guinea, we have a telehealth device and three different intra-oral camera attachments that are being utilized to bring top quality mentoring from international experts to Guinean dental students. Through the specialty peripheral cameras connected to the telehealth device, the dental expert beaming in can see right into the mouth of the patient that the dental student is treating. Dr. Westerduin was all set to move to Guinea to volunteer with Mercy Ships, but that all changed in March 2020. Currently residing in the Netherlands, she now observes the Guinean dental students all week long through the telehealth device, and on Fridays she holds a class for the students to address any gaps in knowledge that she observed throughout the week.

The photo above shows Dr. Westerduin’s view through the telehealth device, with images from the intra-oral cameras on the right, and ex-rays of the patient’s teeth on the bottom left.

Our partnership with Mercy Ships has helped to make the program in Guinea even more sustainable. Mercy Ships currently cannot doc their ships due to COVID-19. However, dental experts from across the world can safely mentor the dental students through the telehealth device. Mercy Ships directors and the telehealth device will stay in Guinea long after the ship comes and goes so that the new dentists are supported by international experts as they continue to learn and progress. The program will build local capacity and create a lasting impact on the community, ensuring their long-term needs are met.

Thank you Mercy Ships, for your partnership and dedication to strengthening the health systems of communities in need!