Oral Health Care and Multidisciplinary Knowledge at the Volunteering Work in Peru: an Experience Report.

Abstract

People in lower-income societies are facing significant challenges in accessing primary oral health care during their entire lives. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have facilitated the provision of dental services by outreach program volunteers to low-and middle-income countries. Volunteering programs worldwide create a positive new experience between the students and professionals who are able, available, and with the initiative to help others, their objective primarily is to give some relief to those involved in the approximately more than 4 billion people worldwide who have a small or no access to basic dental care. Peru is one of the places in Latin America that needs attention when it comes to oral health care. The highest level of caries disease was biostatistically found in Cuzco. A lack of information regarding oral hygiene could explain this high prevalence of caries in Peru, concluding that the cities around the country of Peru need volunteering intervention. This study is classified as an experience report and a description of a dental volunteer program event. The proscript author has experienced an entire volunteering work in dentistry as an academic dental medicine student. All the activities developed were localized in the city of Cusco in the center of public health named Centro de Salud Clas Wanchaq, promoting oral health actions daily and being able to put into practice the techniques learned before in Brazil. Conclusively, in terms that express the ethical considerations in community oral health, it is necessary to discuss an overview of community oral health from an ethical perspective, including the importance of equity, human rights, and social justice in providing oral health care.