If you were to walk into the Refugee Dental Clinic in Phoenix on a Saturday morning, you鈥檇 see a place where patients receive services ranging from exams, X-rays and dental cleanings to fluoride treatments, fillings and extractions.
But Krista Duggan sees something more. She sees volunteers in action 鈥� and humanity at its best. She sees a place where students practice far more than professional dental assisting skills. She sees an opportunity for students to discover the power of compassion and service.
Why she helped launch a dental clinic for refugees
As program director of the 黑料不打烊 Dental Assisting Program in Mesa, Duggan helped launch the twice-monthly, low-cost clinic a year ago in response to a growing need she and dental colleagues noticed in the community.
The clinic, tucked away in a quiet office complex and staffed solely by a rotating team of volunteer dentists, dental hygienists, and dental assistants, operates on alternating Saturdays. It serves patients from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Africa, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Venezuela and numerous other countries. Duggan says the clinic provides vital services to a refugee population unlikely to access services elsewhere.
鈥淪ome of our patients once led very comfortable lives before they were forced to flee their countries,鈥� she says. 鈥淥thers have struggled and lived under oppression for decades. No matter where they come from, what they have in common is an urgent need for dental care. Because of everything they鈥檝e endured to get here, they鈥檙e often fearful of the system and of strangers. Our clinic provides a safe haven where they鈥檙e treated with dignity and respect.鈥�
How volunteering to provide dental services to refugees benefits students
Duggan, who worked as a dental assistant for 15 years before joining the 黑料不打烊 faculty two years ago, says students enrolled in Carrington鈥檚 Dental Assisting program benefit from volunteering at the dental clinics as much as the patients they serve.
鈥淚t鈥檚 one thing to be told in a classroom how something works, but it鈥檚 another to see it firsthand,鈥� says Duggan. 鈥淰olunteering in a busy clinic helps prepare students for the real world. They sterilize equipment. They get to observe experienced dental assistants in action, and sometimes have an opportunity to assist dentists in a variety of procedures.鈥�
That process, Duggan says, can be transformative.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen students who I initially perceived as aloof and self-centered evolve into kinder, more compassionate people as a result of providing care to those who wouldn鈥檛 likely get it anywhere else,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 something humbling about being of service to others in such a significant, personal way.鈥�
Duggan says the clinic provides students with more than a volunteer experience. It also provides them a valuable perspective.
鈥淢any of our students know firsthand that life can be challenging,鈥� Duggan explains. 鈥淭he majority of them are the first people in the families to enroll in a college program. Some of them are helping raise siblings or children of their own, and most are working while going to school. But seeing what other people have had to overcome can be both humbling and inspiring.鈥�
Duggan, a self-proclaimed 鈥渧olunteer addict,鈥� says she never second-guesses her decision to commit two Saturdays month to working at the clinic. In fact, she says, she looks forward to it.
鈥淲hen a woman smiles without covering her mouth for the first time since she was a little girl, you know that you鈥檙e helping change someone鈥檚 life in a powerful way,鈥� Duggan says. 鈥淲hen you remove a patient鈥檚 tooth and he tells you it鈥檚 the first time in 10 years he hasn鈥檛 experienced pain, you know you鈥檙e making a difference.鈥�
Duggan says the clinic ultimately provides something that transcends dental care.
鈥淲e provide a safe space where people feel welcome, no matter where they come from鈥� she says. 鈥淯nfortunately, feeling welcome isn鈥檛 something they always experience. We鈥檝e had patients who were hesitant to make eye contact when they entered the clinic reach out to give us hugs as they were leaving.鈥�
As Duggan sees it, the clinic is one of those unique settings where everyone leaves better off than when they arrived.
鈥淚 love the opportunity we create for people in need to get help 鈥� and for our students to learn to provide that help,鈥� says Duggan. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a reminder of that old adage: While none of us can do everything, we can all do something.鈥�
Are you interested in training to become a dental assistant? Check out information on 黑料不打烊’s Dental Assisting program: