Govan Dental Nurse Hopes to Bring Smiles to Malawi
A dental nurse from Govan is hoping to bring smiles to Malawi as she gears up for a charity venture, which will involve working in tricky conditions with very basic equipment. Caroline Coghlan, from Coia & Associates, will leave for Africa on the 12th September. She will be joined by fellow dental professionals for the project, which is run by Smileawi.
Caroline was inspired to take on the challenge after her boss, Dr Coia, travelled to Malawi last year. She said that conditions will be very different and she’s expecting the trip to be very hard work, both physically and emotionally. In the UK, we tend to take things like going to the dentist for granted. In Malawi, very few people get to see a dentist and those who do often wait several months.
Caroline has grown up children and grandchildren and decided that now was a good time to use her skills to help others. There are very few dentists in Malawi and dental problems are rife. The nature of the working day will be very different at home, but it will provide an eye-opening experience for all involved.
Dr Coia took part in the same project last year and returned home with incredible tales and stories that he claimed changed his life. When Caroline heard him speak, she thought it sounded like an adventure too exciting to turn down.
Since she decided to sign up, Caroline has been busy raising funds for her trip. She has completed a 10k walk and hosted a cake sale and charity gala night. She has collected around £1,700 and thank all her colleagues and patients for their generous donations.
Smileawi was established by dentists Nigel and Vickie Milnes. The couple from Dunoon established the charity in partnership with the Raven Trust. They wanted to do something to bring dental care to the people of Malawi and try to reduce the number of people suffering from dental pain.
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