DENTAL HEALTHCARE - Work side by side with Dentists at a neighborhood dental health clinic

My experience in Samana with Aldeas de Paz has definitely exceeded my expectation in a couple of different aspects. First, by working as a dental assistant through the dental care program, I was able to work with a dentist side by side, directly interact with patients, and closely observe the reality of dental care in a developing country. Staffs at the hospital including my dentist were very nice to me which made it easy to adapt and become part of the team. It had been a valuable experience that I wouldn’t be able to experience elsewhere. Next, I got to meet amazing people here – other volunteers. Open-minded people with great hearts come here to volunteer and it was great to spend time with them by working and traveling together, sharing stories and lives. I am blessed to have these friendships. Overall, it was a tremendously enriching experience!

My experience in Samana with Aldeas de Paz has definitely exceeded my expectation in a couple of different aspects. First, by working as a dental assistant through the dental care program, I was able to work with a dentist side by side, directly interact with patients, and closely observe the reality of dental care in a developing country. Staffs at the hospital including my dentist were very nice to me which made it easy to adapt and become part of the team. It had been a valuable experience that I wouldn’t be able to experience elsewhere. Next, I got to meet amazing people here – other volunteers. Open-minded people with great hearts come here to volunteer and it was great to spend time with them by working and traveling together, sharing stories and lives. I am blessed to have these friendships. Overall, it was a tremendously enriching experience!

A few weeks from when I wrote this, I stepped on to a small budget airliner and made my way across the Caribbean to the Dominican Republic. Before this experience I had never left the United States, and I was unsure what my time in Samana would be like. Needless to say, it was an absolute blast.
I volunteered in a small dental clinic in Las Pascualas, a small, sleepy city on the outskirts of Samana. Volunteering in the clinic opened my eyes to some of the difficulties associated with public health care in a developing country, and it allowed me to look at public service through a different perspective. The dentist I was under was very nice, and incredibly accomidating; an absolute joy to volunteer under.

This trip also allowed me to meet people from around the globe, and develop friendships with people who I would have never come across in daily life. The other volunteers really helped make this trip worthwhile, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with each one of them.

Overall, Aldeas de Paz is a great organization to be apart of. The volunteers work hard to help the people of Samana, and the program director, Manfred, is very enabling. He will go out of his way to make sure you are getting the most out of your experience. I stayed in Samana for 28 days, and the time has honestly gone by very quickly. I have learned more than I had hoped to on this adventure, and I definitely recommend it to others.

I chose Aldeas de Paz as my first trip out of my home country the United States and I am so glad that I did. It was an eye opening journey that taught me a lot about the experiences of those living in a third world setting and a lot about myself as well.  I worked in the dental clinic of the hospital in Samana. I was given the amazing opportunity to work as a dental assistant there within the first three days of my arrival which was more than I was expecting! Everything here is learned in a very hands on manner, so that even in just a month of being here I feel that I have learned and done so much! The staff of the hospital, and all the local people of Samana for that matter, were very patient with me and accepting as I don't speak very much Spanish. Having to adapt to the language and cultural differences only made the experience richer. The rest of the volunteers were also an enormous help in getting me comfortable in the new
environment and seeing that leaving my comfort zone was the most valuable part of this journey. I will never forget the people I met here. I made friends from around the globe, and I will carry these friendships with me the same as my experiences in the Dominican Republic. Overall it was an amazing adventure and has only fueled my fire to experience more of the
world! I would definitely recommend Aldeas de Paz to anyone looking for the same.