Dental Team and Trustee Visit Feb/March 2024
Alison, Keith and Neil, trustees from Wales have arrived in the village for 2.5 weeks. This is what they have been doing.
February 28
Arrival
It’s good to be back in Rwanyana and to have this view from the guesthouse. We had a great welcome from many of the school pupils who met us on the way up the village with enthusiastic singing and dancing. We caused quite a traffic jam!
February 29
Knitting Lessons
Since Alison took her knitting on her first visit there has been an interest in learning to knit. This is more so after the distribution of hand knitted baby clothes from Stannington WI on the last trustee visit. This photo shows Linnet, Adore and Brenda concentrating hard during their first lesson. They are really keen students.
Special Needs Group
It’s great to see the children and carers in the special needs group again. This photo is of Blessing. She is 5 years old and is working really hard to improve her balance and standing up. Blessing lives with her mother on the other side of Lake Bunyoni and makes the long journey to the group every week. Nurse Brenda, George and Dinah are running a fantastic group where children of all abilities are valued and cared for.
The view from the guesthouse
Knitting lessons
Blessing
March 2nd
Welcome for Alison and Ken
This weekend we welcomed our friends Alison and Ken to the village. They are here for 2 weeks to assist in a dental outreach camp along with Ugandan dentists.
The hostel family excelled themselves in providing a great welcome with lots of singing and dancing. Several of the college students came back to the village especially to meet the new visitors. We had a fun afternoon with them and it was encouraging to hear how enthusiastic they were about their various courses.
Welcome to Ken and Alison
Welcome party dancing
March 4th
The Dentists Arrive
On Monday the Ugandan dentists arrived bringing a truck full of dental supplies. This was a full field clinic that was then set up in a Bevan school classroom. This caused lots of excitement in school with many inquisitive faces appearing at the windows.
Work started immediately on screening all of the children for dental disease and providing fluoride treatment. 275 children were seen by the 4 dentists in one afternoon. Children loved getting a sticker for seeing the dentist. None of the children would have been seen by a dentist before and they were very well behaved despite not knowing what was going to happen.
Children needing further treatment were recorded in a register to come back for treatment and Neil did a great job of entertaining and distracting the children whilst they were waiting to be seen.
The dental camp is funded by generous donations from friends, family, and colleagues of Alison and Ken including Lighthouse Church, Anglesey.
Dental Screening
Gold Star Stickers
Neil doing crowd control
March 5th – 14th
Dental Camp
Nursery 1 classroom was converted into a dental surgery for the 2 weeks of the dental camp. Nursery 1 children shared a classroom with Nursery 2 during this time. Thanks to the teachers for giving up their space! The Ugandan dentists brought all the equipment needed including folding dental chairs, generator, portable dental equipment and implements. This was supplemented by dental supplies generously donated from the UK. Dental tools were sterilised using a pressure cooker.
Dentist Andrew did a great job with this boy who was very anxious about having a tooth removed. Andrew took time to explain what he needed to do and what tools he was going to use. Andrew helped the boy to ‘pull’ his own tooth out by holding Andrew’s hand whilst he was extracting the tooth. The boy got 5 gold star stickers for being very brave. Andrew has a special skill in working with children, often singing and joking with them during treatment.
Several mums came in to help reassure the younger children during and after their treatment. None of the children had been to a dentist before so this was a big help in keeping them calm with a familiar face.
Classroom becomes a dental surgery
A boy pulls own tooth out
Mums comfort children during treatment
March 14th
A Very Successful Dental Camp
The dental camp finished on Thursday with visits by the dentists to both village primary schools. They talked to the children and teachers about caring for teeth and how to brush their teeth properly. All children and staff were given a toothbrush. This photo shows some staff and children from the government school showing off their new toothbrushes. The dental camp has been very well received by children and the community. A total of 1076 (!) people were assessed and treated during the 2 weeks. The dental team were supported by many others from the community to mobilise people to come, manage the queues and calm anxious younger patients. It was great team work! Good links have now been made with the local dentists on the team.
Thanks again to Dentist Alison Foxall for making an idea come together and to everyone who supported the camp with encouragement and financial help.
March 15th
Visiting Former Students
We visited Rukore Community Polytechnic to catch up with some former Bevan school students who are now doing courses there. It was great to see them and to hear how they are enjoying their courses and college life.
Bevan community school meets for a chapel assembly on Fridays at 8am. This week the weather was very wet and it was a challenge for the speakers to be heard over the noise of the rain on the tin roof. The preacher decided to stop until the rain subsided a bit and to have some songs which the children really enjoyed. Their enthusiastic singing is accompanied by drumming and shakers. We tried hard to join in the action songs and dancing but were outdone by the little ones from nursery classes at the front. At the end the teachers joined in for a joyous whole school dance.
New toothbrushes
Rukore Polytetechnic visit
School assembly
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Our charity and the people of Rwanyana depend on the kind donations of our supporters. If you would like to support our work to provide education and relieve poverty in Rwanyana, please click here to make a donation here. A little really does go a long way and every donation helps a community in need.
Everyone at Rwanyana Community Trust would like to thank our wonderful supporters for their generous support, we couldn’t do this without you.