Dental Hygienist Volunteering Opportunities in Ghana
Dental Hygienist Volunteer Opportunities Abroad│Ghana
Our dental hygienist volunteer opportunities abroad are provided in a hospital in Accra, Ghana, and can be in a healthcare centre, and village outreaches. Your dental hygienist volunteering helps to meet the pressing health needs of local people through preventive dentistry education, and carrying out scaling, polishing, and oral health checks. In Ghana, as in Africa more widely, oral health is of critical concern, with few resources targeted at prevention, and dental care itself being inaccessible for most people through there being a lack of dentists, dental hygienists, and is unaffordable for most people.
Dental caries and periodontal diseases are widespread, primarily due to a lack of awareness of proper oral hygiene practices. Many Ghanaians do not have access to a dentist, and are often unaware of the significance of maintaining good oral health. As a result, dental problems are frequently left untreated until they become severe, leading to pain, discomfort, and sometimes even life-threatening.
Whilst Ghana does have dental hygienist training, it seems that too few have previously taken up being dental hygienists as a career, and the focus has been previously on training dentists. Dental hygienist volunteers in Ghana can play a vital role in delivering dental support and education.
In Ghana, our volunteer dental hygienists will be warmly welcomed by the health care professionals, a can draw many people to receive your services when based at local health care centres, particularly our rural centre 20km from Accra, which has its own accommodation for you. You can therefore experience up to 3 types of service delivery, from urban (main) hospital with its dentistry specialisations, to rural healthcare centre (general and referral), and village outreach organised by our partners in Ghana as personnel resources allow.
Join us in Ghana and make an incredible difference in people’s lives and help shape the future of people’s oral health there.
Image courtesy of NLM
Dental Hygienist Volunteering in Accra, Ghana
Location: Accra, Ghana
Weeks: 2 - 12
Code: Gh-De-Hy
Description:
Volunteer Dental Hygienists join us in a main hospital in western Accra, the city where most of Ghana’s dental professionals are located.
Your hygienist volunteering would have a significant impact on the dental care of patients, as well as in supporting the oral health education.
You will be licenced to work by the hospital for up to 12 weeks, working under the supervison of local dental professionals.
Depending on the number of dental volunteers, our local partners arrange village outreaches, which always draw many people who would otherwise find it difficult to access dental care due to location or finance.
You can work a 4-5 day week, giving you time to explore as well.