Recently Dr Desrosiers’s hygienist Linda Z. traveled to Ecuador. We were thrilled to be able to donate some supplies for her trip and asked her to share some highlights with you!

Our team of 17 volunteers flew from Canada to Quito Ecuador and took a bus to a city called Tena in the Amazon jungle.  The team consisted of five dentists, five 4th year dental students from the University of Manitoba, one hygienist  😁,  two dental assistants, and four volunteers including  a host and translators.

Each morning we took a bus to a different village to perform dentistry and hygiene for the local people. We visited four different villages on this trip. There is no access to dentalcare in the villages and, even if there was, the people would not have the means to afford. To put it in perspective there is no shopping in the villages and nowhere for people to even buy a toothbrush.

Along with boxes of donated dental supplies, we were able to bring clothing, toys, and other personal care items for the people. The people are warm and kind and have beautiful smiles; they were very appreciative of our work and the goods we brought.

Outside of providing hygiene services, my goal on this mission was to educate. From chairside discussions to reading to children the Brush, Floss and Rinse book , I was able to educate about the importance of dental care for their future.
We were able to help over 300 people on this trip! “