1. The landscape of community engagement at UWC;
Faculty of Dentistry Outreach Programmes
Prof Rob Barrie
31 October 2017

2. Background Dental Students need patients for training purposes
Patients (especially in W Cape) need dental treatment
Outreach is therefore a win-win situation!

3. Outreach Programmes
Apart from Phelophepa train, they take place after hours
Voluntary student participation
Planned in conjunction with Health authorities
Basic dental services provided – mainly for pain and sepsis

4. Phelophepa Health Train
There are two trains in operation simultaneously
Students are from Nursing, Optometry, Pharmacy, Psychology and Dental
Every final year dental student works for 2 weeks on the train
One whole carriage is the Dental Clinic – six dental surgeries
Students work, eat and sleep on the train
Train usually stays at a town for two weeks at a time
All costs are borne by the Transnet Foundation.

7. Phelophepa Dining Car

8. Phelophepa Dining Car

9. Phelophepa Laundry

10. Students need access to social media!

11. Weekend Outreaches
Takes place on a Saturday (as well as a Sunday, usually)
Places visited include Montagu, Bonnievale, Piketberg, Vredenburg, Tulbagh, Ceres, De Doorns, Rawsonville
Use Faculty Mobile Clinic (2 fixed chairs)
Set up five portable chairs, lights and suction in school or health clinic
Provide all instruments, equipment, materials and autoclaves.

12. Our Mobile Dental Clinic

13. Patients queueing

14. At work in clinic using portable equipment

15. At work in clinic using portable equipment

16. At work in clinic using portable equipment

17. At work in clinic using portable equipment

18. Central Sterilizing Department

19. Keeping the little ones busy

20. Happy students arriving at the clinic

21. Time for relaxing as well!

22. What is achieved for the students
Students participate enthusiastically
They experience a real-life working environment
They are not burdened with stress of being assessed on procedures
They work incredibly hard
They treat their patients with empathy and respect
They love it!

23. What is achieved for the patients
Free dental service near their home, when they are not away at work
In 2016, we treated:
2007 patients
Extracted 3486 teeth
Filled 115 teeth
Scaled and polished 51 patients
Placed 892 fissure sealants
Value of these treatment services is R
In addition, over 3000 patients were seen on Phelophepa!

24. How do the students feel?
They write a reflection of their experiences on Phelophepa:
“For the last 4 years studying dentistry seemed to be a never ending battle. Most times the pressure of the course made me think that dentistry is not something I could see myself doing as a long term career. As soon as I started working on the train I discovered for the first time how I enjoyed the work I do and how wonderful working as a dentist can be. I loved every bit of my Phelophepa train adventure and wished it did not have to end. It will remain the highlight of my chapter as a dentistry student.”

25. How do the students feel (about Phelophepa)?
“I gained great respect for all the inter-professional primary healthcare workers, and realized that we were not just a dental team, but part of a bigger team related to overall health care.”
“I am truly grateful for the knowledge I gained and an unforgettable experience.”
“It was refreshing to ask myself what I could do best for the patient, instead of subconsciously calculating how many quotas I could glean from their jaws”.

26. How do the students feel?
“The train has had a very big impact on my self confidence and has given me a much needed boost. It allowed me to grow and to believe in myself as clinician. I gained a lot of experience and the supervisors were approachable and supportive and allowed me to gain new skills. I will forever be grateful for my time on the Phelophepa health care train and will treasure all the good memories I made always. The train was by far the best experience I have had in my 5 years as a dentistry student, and if I was given half the chance to go again, I would without a doubt; grab the opportunity with both hands. Thank you UWC for allowing us to be part of one of the best outreach programmes there is. It was an honour serving the people of Mthatha”.

27. How do the students feel?
“I have never wanted to become a dentist more than I did when I was on the train. The manner in how the patients looked at us every morning when we arrived for clinics, how friendly they were, how patient they were to receive treatment and ultimately, how grateful they were after treatment was a great feeling to say the least. After experiencing this during the course of the week, I just came to a sudden realisation and I thought to myself “I have chosen the right career. This is where I can make a difference in people’s lives”. ”

28. How do the patients feel?
Research project carried out in 2016 (Shirzadi, Simpson, Smit and Weidemann) interviewed 275 patients at Op die Berg and Fistantekraal Outreaches
The mean waiting time was minutes; and 89.4% of the patients were satisfied with this waiting time

29. Shirzadi et al (2016)
93% of the patients found the overall treatment to be ‘good’ or ‘excellent’

30. Shirzadi et al (2016)
Compared to state dental clinics, 70% of the patients perceived the service delivered at these outreach clinics to be of a higher standard.

31. Conclusion Our Dental Students are doing an excellent job
Patients appreciate what the students are doing
The Dental Outreach Programme is very worthwhile!
UWC can be very proud of our Dental students!

32. Thank you for listening!