been to the Dominican Republic (to our Somos Amigos
Medical/Dental Clinic), then back for a week to hear Dr. Ciancio
lecture on periodontics, and then I spent two weeks in Hong Kong. In
the Dominican Republic (DR), I broke and severely sprained my right
ankle (I tripped on a pothole while jogging on a dark road), peeled off
the skin from my right palm, and got the flu, but I still had a great
time treating patients from the surrounding villages. When I went to
Hong Kong, I got flu again, as well as food poisoning and diarrhea,
but still managed to see most of the islands, hike up to the Peak, and
view the city from above.
In the DR, we’ve added a new element to our village mission--
replacement teeth in the form of removable dentures. One dentist, Dr.
Bill Donaldson, works with a dental technician from a “high end” lab
in Virginia, and a denturist from Calgary, Canada. We are truly
changing lives in this community. We are still overwhelmed, but the
sophistication of the medical [we have portable lab analysis machines]
and dental, interventional care is ever increasing. It is really exciting to
actually see the results in this small [relatively] group!
The status of the local community, where we stay in their homes, has
grown tremendously because of our presence. It’s true that we have
built clinic buildings and a school, and one of our delegation gave
money to build a new church. The area has grown in prestige: the
“huts” where we stay have improved--some with running water that
we engineered and helped to build; but mostly, their lives have
improved in a myriad of ways, and it shows. It is profoundly
rewarding to be a part of this “mission”.
Back in the US, Dr. Scott Gritz found us a great speaker for the
January All-day meeting, Mrs. Fridley got the place packed, and Dr.
a’ Becket got us a great venue, meal, and snacks. The vendors also
provided lots of goodies. Dr. Ciancio mentioned that Arm & Hammer
Age Defying Toothpaste was excellent for reminerialization.
Rembrant has a good anti-canker sore toothpaste.
He mentioned that pyrophosphates in tarter control toothpastes may
cause aphthous ulcers and that Listerine is almost as good as
chlorhexidine rinse and doesn’t stain. Periodontal disease is at least a
risk factor for preterm low birth weight [PLBW] babies, pneumonia
& other respiratory diseases, bacteremia, heart attack, stroke, and
increased severity of diabetes. Some herbal agents can be dangerous
to the liver [my note- particularly the short chain amino acids].
After my brief stint back in the US, I went to Hong Kong. Hong Kong
makes NYC look like a sleepy southern town! They have road on top
of road on top of road, with a walkway over it all. Sixty floors is
nothing for a building, particularly in Central Hong Kong. There are
no restaurants on the sidewalks, which is a quaint custom here-- there
are just people rushing about. You can’t figure out whether to walk
on the right or the left-- people charge at you from every direction.
There is every high-end boutique ever incorporated represented
there-- in many venues. Forget about Home Depot, you can’t find a
tool anywhere near Central, and it’s not easy to find “home
improvement” stuff anywhere. But the whole interior of the island is
forested, and you can walk up to the Peak [or take the tram] and look
down on the city on the perimeter, and it’s pretty spectacular. The
uniform is a black suit [I had one made pretty cheaply!], and virtually
no one drives. You ride the train of taxis, “jit” buses, or double-
decker buses, ferries, or above and below ground trains. They really
have their act together on transportation. No one eats with chopsticks!
No, I didn’t get married!
Very Best,
T
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