Helping the community around CLTC one denture at a time

After 2 years of planning, Jill Tait, along with three dentists organised a denture making course that was run at CLTC. Their work in serving the community in and around CLTC is changing lives in Papua New Guinea, where it is often too far or expensive to see a dentist.

Jill is with children at the primary school that CLTC runs on the campus. She is teaching the children on dental hygiene. — Jill with children at the primary school that CLTC runs on the campus. She is teaching the children on dental hygiene.

In March this year, after 2 years of planning, a denture making course was run at CLTC for six people. This was organised by Jill Tait with three dentists coming from the USA for a week. One of the students showed exceptional capabilities and is now working full-time in the clinic. So far, the clinic has been able to provide 80 sets of teeth. How exciting this has been. Lives have literally been transformed on and off campus.

Nyree, daughter of one of the CLTC faculty members, and one who has been trained to do extractions and now also dentures, checking children in the CLTC kindy.

Jill is a nurse, not a dentist. She saw patients coming into the medical clinic daily with tooth abscesses. With only 62 dentists in the whole country of 9 million, it was too far or too expensive for most to see a dentist, and they suffered and sometimes died of a tooth abscesses. Jill organised for nurses to be trained to pull out rotten teeth which they began doing that at the CLTC clinic and elsewhere. Many patients asked if they could get false teeth to replace the ones removed. That was not an option, but now it is.

Tooth decay has become a big problem in the country with the introduction of processed sugar into their diet and poor habits of dental hygiene. Almost all the school children at CLTC have tooth decay. This is a growing problem in Papua New Guinea, which CLTC is helping to alleviate.

Papua New Guinea – Building leadership development capacity

Maxon Mani and George Mombi, leaders from Christian Leaders Training College (CLTC), are shaping the church in PNG, Melanesia, and Pasifika. CLTC empowers leaders through Master’s level studies, strengthening Evangelical communities for 50 years. Now, these visionary men are pursuing doctorates at University of Otago to further their impact.
Read more