Napier Barracks in Folkestone has been in the news quite a lot recently so readers of Rye News may not need me to tell them that currently it houses approximately 300 young, single, male refugees and asylum seekers.
I found myself driving towards Folkestone a couple of weeks ago reflecting that this was not a place I would have expected to be going to as part of my work providing emergency dental pain relief for refugees. Since 2016 I had made seven trips to Northern Greece and Lesbos for this purpose but this has not been possible for over a year so I decided to volunteer my services as a dentist to Dentaid. This is a charity which provides dental treatment for the homeless or vulnerable housed in various parts of the UK including Hastings and Eastbourne. I was surprised to receive a request to go, at short notice, to Napier Barracks where Dentaid run a mobile dental clinic and I decided to accept.
In some ways the experiences in Greece and Folkestone were similar. The sites were former military ones and fenced off with barbed wire topped enclosures. One has to pass through security gates and prove one’s credentials to enter. The facilities I had to work in led to compromises in the treatment I could provide. In Folkestone Covid-19 restrictions meant that I could not use a high-speed drill though at least I did have an x-ray unit which was a luxury compared to the overseas trips. This meant that I could do a potentially difficult extraction of a root for a man with a badly swollen face. Another similarity to being in Greece was that patients for whom I couldn’t provide treatment due to lack of time, equipment or other restrictions had to be referred elsewhere. I wondered when, or if, they would ever receive this treatment.
The patients I saw were from Syria, Kuwait, Iran and one was from Eritrea. Communication was not easy as none of the patients spoke more than very basic English, some had no English at all. We found that some security guards were able to translate, otherwise a translation app on the smart phone provided a solution though at times we had to resort to sign language. We got by, the great thing is to be flexible.
As with previous volunteering trips there was a mixture of frustration and satisfaction. One has to accept the limitations and not dwell on them, but rather celebrate what can be achieved: simple fillings, some extractions and the relief of pain. I was ably assisted by Sarah, a dental nurse who had volunteered at Napier Barracks before, and Emma, a Dentaid co-ordinator. The mobile surgery had been driven all the way from Hampshire. Dentaid is providing an ongoing service in Folkestone and I am due to make several more trips there this year.
Image Credits: Emma Coulam .
So pleased to learn that top class dentist Kyriocos Hajikaku – I know from experience – who has made a number of trips to help refugees in Greece is now providing his expert help to refugees at the Dentaid mobile dental clinic at Napier Barracks, Folkestone too. Such a job calls not just for medical knowledge but for imagination in problem-solving and a range of interpersonal skills which those in Rye who know him can vouch he has in abundance. Another Ryer for the town to be proud of.
Very interesting article and pleased Kyriacos Hajikakou has been able once again to use his skill to help people in need. How is Dentaid funded and how much work around the country are they able to provide once again with all the restrictions of Covid would also be interesting to know.