TLDP Team 1 May 2025
Team 1 planned on starting the TLDP’s volunteering year by returning to Oecusse. Last year we managed to screen and treat about half of the children in the large school adjacent to our accomodation with the Carmelite Sisters. We hoped to complete the second half of the school classes whilst also seeing the community members who would inevitably present to our team.
Being the first team of the year, there are a lot of logistics involved with the well organised Dr Mary integral in marshalling donated stock, buying anaesthetic and making sure everything made its way to Dili. There was also the Timor Leste bureaucracy to be negotiated with our accreditations and customs declarations. Our Maubara clinic had been dormant for the first few months of the year and so we relied upon our local colleagues to stocktake, compile and clean everything needed for a successful trip.
May 6th saw the arrival into Dili of Dr Henry to be greeted by Mario our Rotary liaison with our Toyota Troopcarrier. SIM card bought, Mario dropped off back to Dom Bosco, Ana Martins collected from the Tasitolu roadside and we were on our way to Maubara.
Our clinic was pleased to see us and with a spare day up our sleeve we held a very busy treatment session for the local community.
The next day saw us packing the Troopy for its ferry trip to Oecusse. After our adventures travelling overland last year we planned on just sending the Troopy to Oecusse with a local driver and the team members taking the luxury of flying.
Taking care to not leave anything behind we fully load the Troopy and say goodbye to the Sisters at the clinic.
We hope that the mosquitoes can read!
Friday saw us take the fully loaded Troopy to Dili, find our driver and organise him to get the Troopy to the ferry “Berlin Ramelau” by late afternoon for the overnight trip to Oecusse. Our team gathered at Dili airport for the flight to Oecusse and old hands Tino Morais and Ana Martins welcomed Delsita Martins who was a young local dentist on her first trip with us. Rounding out the team was Judite Martins who we knew as our Rotary liaison in Dili and who would be our meeter and greeter, marshalling our patients into some semblance of order.
Thinking we would be loaded onto a small plane we were surprised to find an AeroDili jet waiting for us.
The 12 hour overnight ferry was replaced by a much appreciated 30 minute flight.
A new experience for AM as it was her first trip in a plane!
Gathering our belongings we rounded up a couple of local tuk tuks for the scenic 10 minute ride to our accomodation with the Carmelite Sisters.
This was to be our base for the next 14 days, conveniently located a short walk to the large church hall that we appropriate for our clinic.
Sister Olindina greeted us with a welcome drink as we renewed old acquaintances.
Judite, Sister Olindina, Dr Delsita and AM
Tino and Dr Henry
Next morning the Troopy arrived, fresh from its ferry trip and a well oiled machine sprang into action. Students were sent to procure desks from the nearby school and over the next hour or two our mobile clinic was assembled.
The activity attracted a small crowd of patients and we set to work through the afternoon thus getting our Oecusse visit underway.
No visit to Oecusse is complete without a trek to a waterfall. Sunday being a day of rest (even if you have a toothache) gave us the time to hike to a local attraction through a scenic valley.
The days soon settled into a busy routine. Arrive at the clinic at 8.30 to be greeted by 5 to 10 hopeful patients. Whilst Judite was numbering and recording these people the rest of the team was getting our clinic ready for the day. When the clinic was ready for action a start would be made on the assembled patients whilst 2 of the team would head to the nearby school to screen students and herd them back to the clinic for treatment.
Treatment ranged from extraction of abcessed teeth, silver fluoride and glass ionomer restorations through to more cosmetic restoration of anterior teeth, even endodontic treatments for those who had fallen from motorbikes and fractured their front teeth.
At the end of the first week we said farewell to Tino who had to make his way back to his clinic in Gleno, by air and then motorbike. As our chief autoclaver he had taken care to instruct Judite in the vagaries of the gas ring and pressure cooker, an important job that she conscientiously undertook.
We found that when we screened most school classes about 25% would need to attend our clinic. Half of these would need extractions whilst the remainder could have their carious teeth repaired, often using silver fluoride to sterilise the decay prior to restoration.
We must thank the local hospital who allowed their dental technician to come and provide invaluable nursing help to our short-staffed clinic.
Finally it was time to pack up, load everything into the Troopy to then be taken to the ferry, bid farewell to our Carmelite hostesses, take the 30 minute flight back to Dili just in time to put our party clothes on and enjoy a pleasant evening at the Timor Plaza Hotel.
By the end of our two week time in Oecusse we had accumulated some impressive treatment statistics.
Examinations: 599 patients Extractions: 424 teeth Restorations: 511 teeth Silver Fluoride (AgF-KI): 245 teeth Fissure Sealants: 20 teeth Scaling: 47 patients
Timor-Leste Dental Program 