Dental News - Dentists for Africa invites dental professionals to online information session

Dental Tribune International

Wed. 4. November 2020

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NAIROBI, Kenya/WEIMAR, Germany: Dental aid organisation Dentists for Africa (DfA) has already arranged more than 800 aid missions by German dentists, doctors, dental assistants and dental technicians, and around 30,000 patients are treated every year in its projects. The association is inviting anyone interested in becoming involved or learning more to participate in an online information session as part of this year’s annual general meeting on Saturday, 14 November.

The meeting will focus on the serious effects of the coronavirus pandemic in Kenya and the measures taken in this regard. Also to be discussed are the current organisational structures and how these will be transferred to Kenya to ensure and promote the sustainability of DfA’s core projects. For over 20 years, DfA has been running local social and dental projects in Kenya. This includes building dental stations at Kenyan hospitals and health centres.

The organisation improves dental care sustainably by setting up dental stations, arranging prophylactic education at schools and supporting professional training of locals. (Image: Dentists for Africa)

The effect of COVID-19 in Kenya

Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the focus of the association’s work has been on food security for particularly needy children and widows. This is done by distributing food, seeds for planting and fertiliser, as well as providing financial aid to the families being supported by the sponsorship project. Furthermore, personal protective equipment is being provided to local hospitals, and employees and volunteers have initiated educational projects for hospital staff and local communities.

“The coronavirus pandemic has had devastating consequences in Kenya. Food security is at risk, due in part to local closures or the permanent closure of schools. Many children here usually receive regular meals that their families cannot afford at home,” explained Dr Hans-Joachim Schinkel, founder and first chairman of DfA. “The current tense situation confirms how important it is to work with local partners. Our good networking enabled us to provide immediate aid right at the beginning of the pandemic. It is our goal to further strengthen the organisational structures in Kenya with people from the local population in order to be able to improve our aid and make it more sustainable.”

The association is inviting anyone interested in becoming involved or learning more to participate in an online information session from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. CET on 14 November.

Besides his leadership role, Dr Hans-Joachim Schinkel contributes to the dental project by performing dental procedures for patients in need. (Image: Dentists for Africa)

About DfA

The humanitarian aid organisation DfA operates several dental stations in Kenya to improve dental care for the population. The stations are staffed by Kenyan dentists, most of whose studies were funded by the sponsorship project and many of whom are regularly supported by German volunteers. Besides DfA’s commitment to the dental health of needy people in Kenya, it supports social projects. This includes the facilitation of transparent sponsorships for orphans and support of a widows’ cooperative, which enables widows affected by the HIV/Aids epidemic to lead self-determined lives.

Since sustainability of the projects is essential, a major focus of the work of DfA is the promotion of education and vocational training of orphans, especially in medical and dental areas. To date, DfA has established 14 dental stations in Kenya and has arranged over 1,000 sponsorships. More than 250 sponsored children have already completed vocational training.

More information about DfA can be found on the official website.