Message Boards
Today's Active Topics Today's Active Cases Browse Forum Categories My Recent Activity My Messages Private Groups My Marked Threads My Subscriptions
Today's Active Images Today's Active Polls Most Active Topics Global Townie Map Advanced Message Board Search Message Board Terms of Use

More Than One Reason to Go by Taylor Wilkens, DDS

Start Discussion
I jumped at the opportunity to join a trip to Roatan, Honduras. Throughout my life I’ve always been enrolled in schools that have incorporated service outreach into their curriculum, which is why a year ago I had the chance to join a few of my classmates and instructors for a trip to Central America. You might think I’m crazy for giving up my spring break and also working for free, but I found this trip to be fulfilling in so many ways – both for traveling to a new place and for helping others.

I have been on several volunteer trips, but Roatan was different than any of the other places I had traveled. The island as a whole is absolutely beautiful – crystal blue water, tall palm trees, white sandy beaches. While the western half of the island serves as a tourist destination full of shops, scuba diving opportunities, hotels and food, the eastern side is a different story. The east end of the island suffers from lack of clean water, food, shelter, health care, education and much more. Their lack of basic needs clashes from the excess of the other half of the island. This east side is where we stayed and worked for one week.

Our volunteer team was comprised of a medical group, a dental group and a children’s care group. There were also a number of volunteers who came to work on non-medical-related projects like installing biosand water filters. I worked on the dental team as a third-year dental student with two of my classmates and five instructors – a pediatric dentist, an orthodontist, an endodontist, a general dentist and a hygienist. (You, of course, do not need this spectrum of specialists to have a successful trip.)

We were fortunate enough to have brought five portable dental units with us. These each folded up to fit into a briefcase. We also brought dental chairs made of PVC pipe and strapping. We connected a shop vac to the five units for suction and a few air compressors were used for the high- and slow-speed handpieces. We also had a handheld X-ray unit, which was used to aid in diagnosis.

Word spread fast that medical and dental teams were in town and people started trickling in. We soon had a very long line of people in need of dental treatment and worked every day from eight in the morning to six at night to treat as many people as possible. My classmates and I each saw around 10 to 12 people per day.

Unfortunately the dental care in third-world countries is so scarce that most individuals needed too much help for just the one week we were there. Because of this, we had to limit their treatment to deal with their most pressing needs. The majority of procedures were extractions and amalgam fillings. A local church in Southern California sponsors this particular location in Honduras, and returns with new volunteers (and some returnees) each year. The goal in returning is so treatment can be continued on the same patients and conditions can be monitored as best possible.

Although the trip was planned around volunteerism, Friday was designated a “play day” where we headed to the other side of the island for some beach time. It is fairly common for volunteer trips to designate a day or more to sightsee or relax. Depending on the length of the trip, it might be planned to prevent burnout or keep up morale.

The trip was rewarding for me on a number of levels. One benefit for me was being able to travel to a new country I had never been to before. I was able to gain more clinical experience and had one-on-one help from any of the five instructors on the trip with us. Any trip out of your comfort zone and out of the country increases your flexibility and cultural awareness. I think it’s easy to sit at home and just assume that other, more important people are handling all the tough problems in the world. But take one trip like this and you realize that the world is not how you imagine it, or how you want it to be.

One benefit of the trip, which I didn’t really understand until I was there, was the connections I made with people from my community. Working with other people toward a common goal certainly strengthens the bond between staff members and colleagues – I’d argue, its one of the best ways.

Traveling, seeing new sights and experiencing new cultures are some of my favorite things to do. When I can help make a difference in the communities I’m visiting at the same time, the trip becomes so much more meaningful.

If you are interested in getting involved in a mission trip such as this one, there are a number of places you can search out. Often high schools and colleges organize these types trips during their spring and summer vacations. Try contacting their service learning departments and asking if there is a way you can help. You can also check local churches. Another option is to gather a group of your friends and plan a trip of your own. It doesn’t need to be medically or dentally driven – there is just as much need for education [Editor’s note: see page 86 for additional resources]. I encourage you to ask around and see what is available. Perhaps you will find an opportunity that you just can’t pass up.
Author's Bio
Dr. Taylor Wilkens, originally from Spokane, Washington, is a recent graduate of Loma Linda University’s School of Dentistry. He wishes to return to the Northwest and give back to the community that gave so much to him. He plans on continuing to play a part in service outreach not only locally, but also abroad.
Dentaltown Magazine
October 2025
Dentaltown Magazine October 2025 Read Current Issue Read Archived Issues
Sponsors
Townie Perks
Townie® Poll
Do you place implants in your practice?
  
Site Menu
Message Boards Magazine Continuing Education Podcasts Blogs Classifieds Dental News Events Townie® Poll Ebooks Townie Choice Awards
Company Info
Contact Us Advertise With Us Howard Farran DDS, MBA Policies and Agreements
Site Help
The Dentaltown Team, Farran Media Support
Phone: +1-480-445-9710
Email: support@dentaltown.com
©2025 Dentaltown, a division of Farran Media • All Rights Reserved
9633 S. 48th Street Suite 200 • Phoenix, AZ 85044 • Phone:+1-480-598-0001 • Fax:+1-480-598-3450