Bridge2Aid

In February this year President Jaz traveled to Tanzania to work with a team of dentists and dental nurses who volunteered to spend time working with Bridge2Aid in one of the poorest parts of Tanzania. Bridge2Aid works to address the causes of poverty in some of the poorest communities in the developing world. It does this by strengthening local healthcare systems – specifically by training local healthcare workers in the provision of emergency dental treatment. Oral disease, infection and chronic pain desperately need to be addressed in these communities to enable people to work, attend school and care for their families. The sustainable training model passes skills into local communities to provide long-term lasting change by enabling local health workers. Initially the programme was developed in rural Tanzania, and the long term plan is to roll this training out to any country where there is a need. Bridge2Aid believes that everybody has the right to safe emergency dental care. Since 2004 Bridge2Aid has now provided training which has given access to safe emergency dental care for over 4 million people in Tanzania. We have done this through sending volunteers from the UK dental community to train rural health workers. We are saving lives and freeing millions more from the prospect of misery and pain. More than 70% of the world’s population has no access to the most simple dental pain relief, leaving billions to face a daily battle with pain in the toughest of life circumstances. There is a desperate need to tackle oral disease, infection and chronic pain in communities throughout the developing world – to enable people to work, attend school and care for their families. Our work in these communities means local people are able to function free from pain, and avoid the risk of preventable infections and diseases.