UNE dental student pens ‘Bangor Daily News’ op-ed on oral health care in Cambodia

In a Bangor Daily News piece published March 19, 2017, Mitchell Mamorsky (CDM, ’17) described his experiences providing dental care for children at Angkor Hospital for Children in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Mamorsky worked alongside Cambodian dentists and dental nurses, volunteer students and dentists from around the globe, and UNE College of Dental Medicine faculty members Timothy Martinez, D.M.D., associate dean of community partnerships and access to care, and Nicole Kimmes, D.D.S., associate dean of curriculum integration and analytics. All patients receive free care, and many families travel for several hours in hopes that their children will be among the 60 patients seen each day at the nonprofit clinic.

The majority of Mamorsky’s patients required significant dental care. “Patient after patient, I saw more of the same — little kids with decayed teeth, abscesses and pain,” he wrote. “On that first day I saw 10 patients, only one of whom didn’t have multiple cavities.”

Despite the discomfort that the children may have been experiencing, they were grateful for the care, Mamorsky said. “No matter how much they cried or how much discomfort they were in, every child would put their hands together, give a slight head bow and say thank you.”

“These kids knew their parents had to miss an entire day of work to bring them to the hospital,” he continued. “They were truly grateful.”

Read the op-ed in the Bangor Daily News.

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