In rural Jamaica, dentists tend to the poor

Over five challenging days, 18 students and faculty from the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine set up shop in crossroads towns in Jamaica bringing relief and education to thousands who otherwise would suffer unattended. They performed hundreds of cases of dental triage. Photographs by Jessica Rinaldi read story
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A 10-year-old girl named Jada grabbed onto Michael Golub’s hand as he was passing through the courtyard of the primary school in Brown’s Town, Jamaica. She had not been seen by a dentist and had a tooth that was painful and needed to be extracted. The Jamaica mission was bolstered by Golub’s parents, Tufts faculty members who have made humanitarian work a cornerstone of their personal and professional lives. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Children peered through the windows to watch as patients have their teeth extracted inside the makeshift dental clinic in Mount Moriah, Jamaica. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A man received dental care inside a makeshift clinic in Mount Moriah, Jamaica. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Before heading out to Mount Moriah, the team gathered for a quick meeting and pep talk. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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People waited in line to see a dentist inside a clinic at Mount Moriah School. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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As Tufts Dental Student Michael Golub examined 10-year-old Jada, he noticed scars on her arms and face, asked her if she had been abused, and she said that she had been. When he tried to inject her with novocaine, she started to panic and sob. He tried to calm her down and 15 minutes later, her tooth was removed and she was smiling. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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People who had come to Mount Moriah Primary to receive dental treatment and medical care watched as buses full of dentists and dental students arrived. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Sterilized instruments were laid out on one of the tables inside a classroom at Brown’s Town Primary School. The Tufts students did not bring portable drills because of spotty electricity. Instead, they relied on basic tools — mallets, chisels, and forceps — to loosen and pry out rotted teeth. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A student at Brown’s Town Primary School sat quietly as a dental student used the back of his knee to steady the student’s head while preparing to extract a tooth. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Students at Brown’s Town Primary School watched as (left to right) twin brothers, Ben and Zachary Golub stood beside their older brother, Michael during a session they spent teaching the class about dental hygiene. All three of the brothers are currently studying dentistry at Tufts. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A man peeked his head into the makeshift surgical center as he waited in line to be screened on the other side of the wall. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Students hugged Tufts Dental Student Toria Koutras at Brown’s Town Primary School. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Dental students worked to extract a patient’s tooth inside the makeshift dental clinic in Mount Moriah. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A patient held on to a dental student’s hand during a procedure inside a makeshift dental clinic at Brown’s Town Primary School. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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Michigan University Dental Student Arvin Karana played soccer with students at Brown’s Town Primary School after a long day of treating patients. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A patient leaned back after having a tooth extracted in Mount Moriah. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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A boy at Brown’s Town Primary School laughed as Tufts Dental Student Toria Koutras fitted him with the glasses that she uses to examine teeth. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
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