|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
HOPE's mobile dental ambulance provides free dental care to more than 6,700 disadvantaged children and adults in its first year of operation.
A mobile dental ambulance set up by charity The Hope Foundation (HOPE) last year, has to date, provided free dental care to more than 6,700 disadvantaged children and adults who live on the streets of the Indian city of Kolkata.
Inaugurated in April 2023, the mobile dental ambulance is a community outreach programme of Hope Hospital in Kolkata. It offers services including dental check-ups, scaling, tooth extraction and fillings, to underserved communities who would otherwise be unable to access essential dental care services.
In critical cases, patients are referred to the specialised dental clinic at Hope Hospital (a state-of-the-art hospital serving disadvantaged people) for further evaluation and treatment. The programme also aims to raise awareness around the importance of oral health among disadvantaged communities.
Hope Hospital CEO, Samiran Mallik, who oversees this programme said:
“There is significant prevalence of oral and periodontal disease, dental caries, and oral cancers within the population of Kolkata. There is also a low level of awareness about dental health and hygiene, and the dental care infrastructure, and resources are not adequate to serve the needs.
“In response to these needs, in April 2023, HOPE established, (as an extension to Hope Hospital), a Mobile Dental Programme. This programme provides vital mobile dental care for street-connected and slum dwelling communities in Kolkata. The programme also caters to the needs of peri urban and rural communities in and around Kolkata. In the past year, this programme has provided dental care for more than 6,700 children and adults - those who would otherwise have no access to dental care.
“HOPE is very grateful to our donors and supporters who have made this programme possible, and we look forward to continuing to provide this vital service. "
If you would like to support this project or find out more about HOPE’s work in Kolkata, India, please contact info@thehopefoundation.org.uk or visit www.thehopefoundation.org.uk
Key figures from the mobile dental ambulance annual report 2023-2024
Over the past year, the mobile dental ambulance has assisted 6,761 patients, which comprises 4,329 adults and 2,432 children.
Through weekly dental camps within disadvantaged urban and rural communities, as well as within HOPE’s own projects such as its creches and Residential Childcare Centres, the mobile ambulance has enabled:
- 4563 patients to receive scaling services
- 1435 patients to have tooth extractions
- 473 to receive fillings
- 3,701 children and adults to be referred to Hope Hospital for further treatment
- 3,6268 people to receive medication following an oral examination
HOPE’s mobile dental ambulance is aligned with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3, Good Health and Wellbeing: to ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages.
History of The Hope Foundation
Founded in 1999 by Irish humanitarian Maureen Forrest, to provide protection to 13 young women who were living on the streets of Kolkata, HOPE has been steadfast in its commitment to restore human rights to children and families living in extreme poverty within the city and surrounding areas.
Today HOPE implements 57 projects in Kolkata including five crèches, 10 Residential Childcare Centres and a state-of-the-art hospital.
To date, HOPE has touched the lives of nearly 3 million people. This includes 2,900,000 individuals who have received healthcare services, almost 97,000 children who have received educational support, 15,435 children and adults who have been protected from abuse and neglect, 10,633 young women and men who have received life-changing vocational training, and 33,935 families who have been supported through HOPE’s emergency programmes.
Ends
Notes to the editor
- The attached annual report includes a case study of a young girl who has benefitted from the mobile dental ambulance programme.
- Follow HOPE: Facebook @TheHopeFoundationUK, Instagram @the_hope_foundation_uk, Twitter @HOPE_UK
- Visit www.thehopefoundation.org.uk
