Oral Surgeons Needed on Medical Missions

 The dental and oral surgery profession is known for their generosity and  talent on medical missions. However, worldwide, there is still a huge need for these specialists’ skills. A great way for dentists and oral surgeons to help find solutions to the world’s ongoing dental crisis is to become involved in medical missions. At Wagner Oral Surgery and Dental Implant Specialists, we are dedicated to helping improve dental hygiene across the globe. The solution? Medical missions.

Need for Oral Surgeons in Medical Mission Trips

A medical mission is comprised of healthcare professionals, which sometimes includes a group of dental and oral surgery specialists.Together, these individuals travel from one foreign country to another. However, oral surgery medical missions are not always international.

Generally, these medical missions are approximately one week in duration, although some trips involve longer commitments. While these medical missions are generally supported and organized by fraternal or religious organizations, there are also non-religious medical mission organizations that partake in these activities. Each year, approximately two million oral surgeons and dental professionals participate in dental medical missions in North America. There is still a huge demand for oral surgeons’ expertise outside of our own country, though.

Developing Countries in Need of Medical Missions

Healthcare in developing nations is quite different from that of developed countries. In these countries there is almost always a shortage of well-trained healthcare professionals. Basic necessities, such as electricity, supplies facilities, equipment, and sometimes water, are limited, which makes oral health care even more scarce.

To put things in perspective, consider the fact that “Almost 100 percent of the rural population and a vast majority of the poor population living in urban areas of underdeveloped nations have absolutely no dental care. This translates into billions of people,” reported an industry authority. Because of this, it is more important than ever for oral surgeons and other industry professionals to step up and get involved in medical missions.

Many oral surgeons would be horrified to discover the outdated oral surgery practices employed in these remote areas of the world. “In rural areas, where there is no dental care at all, infected teeth are extracted with the help of pliers or twine, without the luxury of local anesthesia. There is no such thing as pain killers or freezing of tissue before extraction. It is always a case of extraction, surgery or extreme crisis situation,” explained a source.

Oral Surgeons, Join Medical Missions Today.

Things do not have to be this way. With the involvement of you and your fellow oral surgeons on medical missions, you can make the world a healthier place, one smile at a time. What may seem like the most basic oral surgery procedure has the potential to make a huge difference in the lives of those less fortunate. In the matter of weeks, your services on medical mission trips could change a community for the better.

To learn more about our involvement in medical missions, contact Wagner Oral Surgery and Dental Implant Specialists at (262) 634-4646 today.