ヘルスサイエンス・ヘルスケア

Volume 6，No.1（2006）

Where there is no dental hygienist
Emiko Koito Shdara（Department of International Community Health, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo＆Earthly Health Cantata）

Dear Fukai-sensei

Nurses, teachers and motorcycle drivers play an

Thank you for your kindness to keep in touchwith me. I would like to introduce great efforts byimportant role for people in Puok District in Siem
Reap Province.

local nurses, school teachers, and motorcycle dri-First, what nurses, teachers and motorcycle dri-vers and Earthly Health Cantata (EHC), a newvers need is to be motivated to work in rural

small non-profit organization, implementing an

areas where work and life are difficult conditions.
One Cambodian motorcycle driver along with hisOral Health Program in a rural area of Cambodia.

Japanese friends started to introduce rural population to the basic rules of oral hygiene in 2001.

Welcome to the eternal green rice fields
People get up early at 5:00 in the morning with

They visited villages and schools in rural areas

rising sun in Cambodia. The big family eats break-and met many people who have suffered fromfast together with smiling every morning. After

tooth pain.

eating breakfast, they work in the vast fields,

Second, these volunteers who work in rural

which are eternal green rice fields. Further, they

areas are encouraged to become good friends withlive with cows as well as livestock animals such as

locals. In May 2002 the Cambodian motorcycle dri-pigs and chickens in their houses. Their lives arever asked one Cambodian nurse to prepare goodin harmony with nature. This report is a small

teaching materials for people. The nurses along

story of promoting oral health program in a ruralwith the Japanese completed a special gamearea of Cambodia.

namedFukuwarai game ， while they became

The program had been implemented in Puok

friends in the process. They made very big face

district in Siem Reap Province which is a ruralfrom clothes, and players could move parts of facearea in Cambodia in 2001. There are 121,317 resi-

such as nose, eyes, lips and teeth. During thedents in the district. 25,651 schoolchildren go togame, the players noticed that teeth were an

their corresponding 62 primary schools. (Puok Dis-

important part of face. They learned naturally.

trict Education Office Report in 2005) However,Gradually, they got accustomed to brushing their

there is no dental hygienist. Also, there is no den-teeth while was washing their face.
Third, these nurses, teachers and motorcycle

tist. Can you imagine that there is no dental
hygienist and dentist in your town?

drivers are teaching their knowledge of oral
hygiene in a friendly and informal way. The Cam-

Where there is no dental hygienist

bodian nurse taught thirty two school teachers in― 93 ―

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

six primary schools and around one thousandof the plan was to inform schoolchildren aboutschoolchildren in two primary schools about oral

dengue fever and diarrhea. They planed to intro-

hygiene in June 2002. They played

game

Fukuwaraiand learned the causes of dental caries,

duce a set of hygiene rules and routines. Minimum
costs were an important aspect of the program.

gum disease, and methods of brushing. The nurses
and the teachers have sustained oral health educa-

Who are their Japanese friends?

tion for the schoolchildren from 2003 until now. InThe Japanese people, who were interested in2005 the program was approved by the Ministryvoluntary activities in oral health and comprehen-of Education and the Ministry of Health in Cambo-

sive health, came from different specialists such asdia.

dental hygienists, dentists, doctors, nurses, nutri-Fourth, these volunteers are also learning andtion specialists, economists, and students. They

teaching the newest information on oral hygiene

were the Japanese friends of the Cambodian peo-and general health. In December 2005 the Cambo-ple. They put together an education plan that useddian nurse taught diagnosis of dental caries andinformal methods such as songs and games. Theygum disease to nine nurses in five health centersalsodeveloped

informative

materials.

Evenand to nine school directors in nine representative

thought all members could not go to Cambodia,

primary schools in the district. Furthermore, nine

they wanted to be involved in the project. Further,nurses were trained to examine schoolchildren.

they establishedThe purpose of this training was to find school-ing global school clinic, in 2001. Their logo waschildren who got severe dental caries with thepeople in the word could live happy ．They initi-

risk to develop abscess and sepsis. When the nurs-

ated actions to achieve this hope. Their association

Earthly Health Cantata, meanIf

es identify a severe case, they refer it to the healthis not so big size, but they are looking forward tocenter or the hospital. The nurses tried to learn

getting more international cooperation for the localand got skills to exam teeth of schoolchildren.

people in developing countries.
Furthermore, some specialists for the public

However, they still need more practice and train-health, community oral health, and health scienceing.
Fifth, what nurses, teachers and motorcycle drivers need is to be encouraged to cooperate withall over the world, also have supported our program.

each other, schoolchildren, their parents and villagers. Further, they sustain the implementation to

They are good friends now
They have been working together for fivepromote an oral hygiene program. The oral healthprogram has good opportunities to expand theyears.

comprehensive health activity. Since 2005 they

One day, smiling.

have implemented the comprehensive health activ-

One day, quarreling.

ity in primary schools with the Japanese friends.

One day, crying.

The comprehensive school health activity is based

One day, be angry.

on World Health Organization recommendation.

One day, be sad.

The plan was that: to wash hands before eating

One day, be happy.

(1)

and after use of the toilet, to drink boiled water, toIn the end, they hold their hands tight andclean the classroom and a toilet. Also, another part

become friends. They will face many problems in― 94 ―

ヘルスサイエンス・ヘルスケア

the future. They will, however, walk together any-

Volume 6，No.1（2006）

Acknowledgements

time. Where there is no dental hygienist, Cambodi-

We are grateful to Dr. Toshio Nakajima, Dr.

an people and their friends will find solutions for

Norimasa Seo, Dr. Masatoshi Goto, Dr. Yu Sugana-this problem and live together with partnership. Inmi, Dr. Hideaki Oda, Chorin temple, Chiba Prefec-

our collaborative efforts we had the approval andture, Yokohama and Niigata City for supporting

the support of the Ministry of Education and thethis program with funds. Our gratitude goes to Dr.

Ministry of Health.

Masanine Jimba and Dr. Seigo Kobayashi for theirinvaluable academic advice. We would like toReference

express to all schoolchildren, their parents, the vil-

1. World Health Organization． Health-Promoting

lagers and the members of Earthly Health Cantata

School Series5． 1st ed， pp1-26． Regional Officehaving participated in this program.

for the Western Pacific ： WHO，1996．

【著者連絡先】
Emiko Koito Shidara
Department of International Community Health, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo
7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
E-mail： koito@med.kawasaki-m.ac.jp― 95 ―