Hands-on dental volunteer abroad program

Are you a dentist, a dental student, or a health care professional? Are you looking for a real hands-on dental volunteer abroad experience, while serving poor communities and sharing your passion and expertise?

Then, look no further. Unlike any other dental volunteer abroad projects, where you shadow local dentists, in Global Crossroad hands on dental volunteer program, you will have ample opportunities to get involved directly in the treatment of local patients in a specially designed one to two week long international dental camp.

Global Crossroad’s international dental camps are part of an exceptional initiative which provides dental care services to meet the immediate dental care needs of marginalized communities of mostly older people, women, and children in rural or poor areas through stand alone dental camps. In this customized dental volunteer abroad program, you will offer comprehensive dental services – curative and preventive to the local community.

Presently Hands on Medical volunteer opportunities are available in these countries

Nepal

Peru

Kenya

India

Guatemala

Ghana

Sri Lanka

Costa Rica

Uganda

Why join an international dental program?

In many developing countries such as Nepal, India, Ghana, Kenya., Peru, Guatemala, and Sri Lanka millions of people still live below the poverty line. They are so poor that they struggle to meet the basic needs of daily life such as food, clothing, and medical and dental care.

As a result, millions of people, mostly older people, women, and children suffer from different kind of diseases, malnutrition, and dental related problems. This is an extremely sad situation. Unfortunately the government does not have enough resources or programs to help these poor people. Our international volunteer dental programs are specially designed to address the lack of dental care in disadvantaged communities. In this program, you will have hands-on experience treating and working with patients, giving you the chance to share your love, passion, and dental expertise. This is a life changing experience for anyone seeking a hands-on dental volunteering experience abroad.

Where are these projects available?

Presently, we offer volunteer abroad dental projects in Nepal, India, Ghana, Kenya, Peru, Costa Rica, Sri Lanka, and Tanzaia. We are mostly operating in rural villages, slums, nursing homes, orphanages, schools, and local community centers.

Your local team leader (a local dentist)

Your local team leader will run the international dental camp. A local dentist (s) will be your team leader throughout the project duration.

The main responsibilities of the local team leader are to coordinate the camp, to help you understand the local dental issues, and to supervise or guide you throughout your volunteer abroad in dental care program so that you can use your experience/expertise efficiently to serve those in need.

The local team lead will be your main professional point of contact and will be there to help you throughout the project. Your team leader will be a highly qualified professional. Depending on the number of volunteers, there will be more than one dentist, local translators, and dental assistants working with the team in the camp.

Who can join the international dental volunteer program?

The primary goal of the dental volunteer abroad project is to give basic dental care to local communities. We are running these international dental volunteer camps in poor communities where local people are suffering from a variety of dental problems, therefore. Anyone with a dental background

Sample Itinerary (one week)

Global Crossroad mostly runs one to two week dental volunteer programs abroad. The itinerary of the dental camp varies with country, community, local needs, interest of the group, and many other factors. However, all volunteer abroad dental programs are composed of three main components: orientation, volunteering, and free time.

Day 1: Orientation and question and answer session about the camp

One the first day of the dental volunteer abroad program, the team leader - a local dentist - will give you a thorough orientation of the dental volunteer abroad project. The orientation starts with the introduction to the country - its culture, history, geography, politics, people, and related issues.

Then, you will be informed of everything that you need to know about the dental volunteer overseas camp - the goal and location of the camp, who are the local people and what are their dental issues, the daily activities, your job responsibilities, health & safety rules in the camp, where is your room, where to find food and transportation, what to do & what not to do, and finally an overall planning of how the camp will be run.

During orientation, there will be a question and answer session and an explanation of the daily itinerary. The orientation will provide you with all the information you need to serve the local communities and have a great dental volunteer abroad experience.

If time allows, you will also visit the site of the camp and meet the local people and leaders. Depending on the conditions, your experience on the medical camp may even start on the first day.

Day 2-5: The beginning of your volunteer dental experience overseas

The next day, you will eat breakfast around 7 am and depart to start working on the project. You should arrive before 8 am, depending on your location and distance to the dental camp.

8 - 9 am: set up dental camp.

When you arrive in the camp, first you will set up the camp. You will make sure that everything is properly set to run the camp effectively. The activities of setting up camp can range from setting the registration desk, cleaning the camp, placing tents, setting the checkup desk and many more.

9–1 pm: Beginning of tasks and dental checkups.

Your hands on dental volunteering work will start around 9 am when local people start to arrive at the camp. The camp will be set up in rural villages and communities, slum areas, orphanages, public schools, old houses, local churches and local clubs. Prior to the start of the camp, we will inform the local community. Therefore, it is expected that local people will start heading to the camp after 8:30 am. These are the people who have been suffering from various dental problems. In the camp, you will treat and advise these patients.

You will be extremely busy treating local people and helping in many activities of the camp for 3 or 4 hours. Working with and for local people is a fantastic and life changing opportunity for you

1 – 11:30 am: break to rest and have refreshments

1 pm: closing the camp

The international dental camp will close around 1 pm. After 1 pm, you will be transferred to your accommodation where you will have lunch and take a rest. During your free time, you can discuss what is on the table for next camp day or explore the local area. The local staff will be available to help you at any time.

Day 6-7: Free Time

The camp runs from Monday to Friday, so Saturday and Sunday will be free time. In your free time, you can explore the country, cities, local markets, meet local people, and visit major tourist attractions. We have been running dental volunteer abroad programs for the last ten years, and we have assisted thousands of volunteers making the most of their weekend by providing them with travel information or helping them organizing short day trips. We will be glad to help you having a very good time, just let us know what do you need.

Travel and Extended Stay

After joining a dental camp abroad for one or two weeks, you can extend your stay by joining other Global Crossroad’s international dental volunteer abroad programs or just travel in the country. Global Crossroad has a strong partnership with affordable and reputed partners that make it possible for you to join any trip you want.

This program starts again on the following week.

Important notice: this is just a sample itinerary to give you a general idea of what is like to be in an international dental camp. As we operate in different countries, in different seasons and on different locations, the itinerary will change accordingly. A new customized itinerary will be available to you before your departure.

Fee and Dates

Dates:

Global Crossroad’s dental abroad camp starts on the first Monday of each month. However, if you have a small group of more than three volunteers who want to join the program, we can create a customized program to allow your group to start in at any date that is more convenient for your group.

Important notice: you can join Global Crossroad’s international volunteer dental camp individually or in a group. We need a minimum of 3 volunteers to run the camp. Therefore, we request that you invite others to make a small group. Or, if this is not possible, please apply at least 2 or 3 months in advance so we can inform you - at least a month in advance - in case we have to cancel the camp setup for those dates if we fail to meet the minimum number of volunteers required.

Fees

Global Crossroad offers one of the most affordable dental volunteer abroad projects. In comparison to our competition, our cost is extremely affordable.

The fee covers the your expenses (room, food, daily transportation, services of local team leaders and staffs) and also expenses related to camp (food, water, medicine)

The Global Crossroad’s registration fee is $299.

Weekly fee

One week: $350

Two weeks: $500

  • Airport pick up and drop off
  • Daily transportation
  • Accommodation
  • Comprehensive travel insurance
  • Food (3 local meals a day)
  • Support & supervision from local doctors and team
  • Medicines that are distributed freely to local people through your participation in this program.
  • What’s not included?

    • Airfare
    • Visa
    • Personal expenses

    Major FAQs:

    • Where are the volunteer dental abroad camps located?
    • Who will benefit from the camp?
    • Do you charge any fees to the local people?
    • What is the duration of the camp?
    • Where will I live? What about my meals?
    • Who will support or supervise me?
    • How far will be the camp from my accommodation?
    • How will I get to the volunteer dental camp?
    • What kind of activities can I do in the international dental camp?
    • What treatments do we provide in the clinic
    • I am a specialized medical doctor or professional. How can I use my expertise?
    • Do I need to bring equipment and supplies?
    • What do I need to take with me?