Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

Volunteers in Jordan distributed aid and held a free dental clinic for some of the country’s poorest people who live in the southern desert.

On the morning of May 6, three dentists and 11 volunteers set off early for the three-and-a-half-hour drive from the capital Amman through the desert to Wadi Finan, in the south of the country, to hold the clinic from the poorest people in the region. They brought with them toothbrushes, toothpaste and mineral water which they donated to the patients; the water was donated by a local company.

For the children, it was the first experience of having their teeth examined; some were frightened until they were soothed and encouraged by the dentist and agreed to accept the treatment. They held the clinic that day and the next, seeing a total of 37 patients. At the same time, they distributed a packet of goods to 80 people; this included five kilos of rice, five kilos of sugar, three kilos of beans, two litres of cooking oil and one box of teabags for each person.

Distribute for the last 9 years
The volunteers have been holding distributions in Wadi Finan for the last nine years, giving out food and school bags and stationery for children. During the distribution in 2009, one of the dentists, Dr Noor, discovered that neither the adults nor the children in the area had the custom of brushing their teeth. As a result, the condition of their teeth was very poor. So she proposed the idea of a dental clinic.

Last year the Tzu Chi International Medical Association established a branch in Amman and invited two Jordanian dentists to take part in TIMA clinics in Taipei and Kinmen, to see how the operation worked. At that same time, it donated five sets of dental equipment and medicines. Originally, 10 dentists from Taipei planned to go to Jordan to help their brothers and sisters there and explain to them the foundation’s medical culture. But they postponed the visit because of the earthquake in Haiti and the need to help there.