Wang Run-yuan is checking the teeth of an orphan. Majority of the children here have tooth decay. Photo by: Guang Ming Daily
By LIM LIY EE
Guang Ming Daily
12th April, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR: Cambodia has experienced a devastation of war for five years in the 1970’s. Subsequent to the tragic massacre happened to one fifth of its population, its economy has declined since then and many social problems have been created. Orphans and young prostitutes can often be seen on the streets.
Malaysian dentist, Wang Rui-yuan has been greatly distressed over their helpless circumstances. Therefore, he and another five dentists, as well as four medical personnel decided to form the “Operation Smile” to provide a free dental care services for Cambodian orphans in Phnom Penh.
Implementing the voluntary dental care program
The volunteers had assisted 130 children to check, fill and extract teeth in a couple of days and they hope to visit the children in Phnom Penh again this coming August.
In addition, they also hope to extend this meaningful operation to children in other poverty areas. Wang truly hopes that he could help the children there to recover their long-lost smiles.
Dentists Liu Yun-wei, Xie Jin-chen, Yan Li-hua, He Ting-qi, Stella Chen, clinic managers Lin Mei-yi and nurses Cai Jin-li are permanent members of the operation. Occasionally, other volunteers will join the operation too.
During the interview with the “Guang Ming Daily”, Wang pointed out that he had promised to be the member of Medicines Sans Frontieres when he was an undergraduate and he had also aimed to provide free dental care services for the needy.
He was greatly distressed when he was visiting 130 orphans of a child care centre named “Speu FGA” in Cambodia last April. He was sorry to hear that most of them had been abandoned by their parents and some of them had even been trafficked by their parents into prostitution.
Being a Christian, his intuition told him that he could wait no more and therefore he decided to implement the operation earlier at that moment.
He indicated that he and his volunteer members had gained a great satisfaction after providing the free dental care services to the children in Phnom Penh in January this year even though they had been indeed tired.
He is not proud of his great movement. Instead, he treats himself as an “invisible angel” who is always ready to help the needy regardless of their skin colours and races.
Wang said that he had been touched by the speech of the Cambodian children when the child care centre was organizing a farewell party for him and his members. Even if he did not understand Cambodian language, he knew that the children were full of gratitude from their expressions. He admitted that he had gained a lot and a great encouragement at that moment.
Planning to open a children dental hospital
Wang added that they also hope to give their infinite love to the Cambodian children while providing them the free dental care services. Nevertheless they had not expected that they were touched by the innocent and gratitude smiles of the children there.
Due to this reason, they have actively prepared the next “Operation Smile” to Phnom Penh in the coming August.
Wang hopes to benefit more children in other child care centres in Cambodia hence he is planning to visit Cambodia at least three times a year. He disclosed that he has planned to set up a children dental hospital in Cambodia five years later and he claimed that this would be his post-retirement job.
Tooth decay affects digestion
Wang explained that Cambodian orphans were skinny and tiny as almost all of them have tooth decay problem which made them unable to chew their food properly, thereby affecting their digestion and absorption of nutrition.
He disclosed that as majority of the non-governmental organizations have just provided medical services instead of dental care services to Cambodian hence he decided to launch the “voluntary dental care services” to benefit the orphans there.
He said that the orphans there had not yelled or resisted while facing the extraction of teeth although they were indeed frightened. They would carry a satisfied smile on their faces subsequent to the extraction of teeth as they were able to chew their food properly finally.
Incomplete equipment causes failures
The “Operation Smile” was not proceeded smoothly when it was first launched in Phnom Penh. Wang and another eight of his team members were prevented to step into the country at the barrier as they had not informed the related local authority in advanced, which had caused a misunderstanding between both sides.
Apart from that, they did not bring along a complete set of equipment and there was no suitable equipment for dental care there hence they failed to carry out their dental care services operation. Instead they could only teach them the correct ways of brushing teeth.
Subsequent to the failure of the first experience, they realized that they have to be well-prepared and study the real situation before lending their hands to the children.
Fortunately, they were not disappointed and upset after experiencing the first failure. Instead, they kept in touch with the Embassy of Cambodia positively after they had returned to Malaysia. In addition, the child care centre in Cambodia has also successfully borrowed the dental clinic located next to the centre from the foreign non-governmental organization.
After they had settled all the entry documents in last December, Wang specially purchased a mobile dental equipment and they again stepped into Phnom Penh on 1 January this year to dedicate their love to the children there.
By LIM LIY EE
Guang Ming Daily
12th April, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR: Cambodia has experienced a devastation of war for five years in the 1970’s. Subsequent to the tragic massacre happened to one fifth of its population, its economy has declined since then and many social problems have been created. Orphans and young prostitutes can often be seen on the streets.
Malaysian dentist, Wang Rui-yuan has been greatly distressed over their helpless circumstances. Therefore, he and another five dentists, as well as four medical personnel decided to form the “Operation Smile” to provide a free dental care services for Cambodian orphans in Phnom Penh.
Implementing the voluntary dental care program
The volunteers had assisted 130 children to check, fill and extract teeth in a couple of days and they hope to visit the children in Phnom Penh again this coming August.
In addition, they also hope to extend this meaningful operation to children in other poverty areas. Wang truly hopes that he could help the children there to recover their long-lost smiles.
Dentists Liu Yun-wei, Xie Jin-chen, Yan Li-hua, He Ting-qi, Stella Chen, clinic managers Lin Mei-yi and nurses Cai Jin-li are permanent members of the operation. Occasionally, other volunteers will join the operation too.
During the interview with the “Guang Ming Daily”, Wang pointed out that he had promised to be the member of Medicines Sans Frontieres when he was an undergraduate and he had also aimed to provide free dental care services for the needy.
He was greatly distressed when he was visiting 130 orphans of a child care centre named “Speu FGA” in Cambodia last April. He was sorry to hear that most of them had been abandoned by their parents and some of them had even been trafficked by their parents into prostitution.
Being a Christian, his intuition told him that he could wait no more and therefore he decided to implement the operation earlier at that moment.
He indicated that he and his volunteer members had gained a great satisfaction after providing the free dental care services to the children in Phnom Penh in January this year even though they had been indeed tired.
He is not proud of his great movement. Instead, he treats himself as an “invisible angel” who is always ready to help the needy regardless of their skin colours and races.
Wang said that he had been touched by the speech of the Cambodian children when the child care centre was organizing a farewell party for him and his members. Even if he did not understand Cambodian language, he knew that the children were full of gratitude from their expressions. He admitted that he had gained a lot and a great encouragement at that moment.
Planning to open a children dental hospital
Wang added that they also hope to give their infinite love to the Cambodian children while providing them the free dental care services. Nevertheless they had not expected that they were touched by the innocent and gratitude smiles of the children there.
Due to this reason, they have actively prepared the next “Operation Smile” to Phnom Penh in the coming August.
Wang hopes to benefit more children in other child care centres in Cambodia hence he is planning to visit Cambodia at least three times a year. He disclosed that he has planned to set up a children dental hospital in Cambodia five years later and he claimed that this would be his post-retirement job.
Tooth decay affects digestion
Wang explained that Cambodian orphans were skinny and tiny as almost all of them have tooth decay problem which made them unable to chew their food properly, thereby affecting their digestion and absorption of nutrition.
He disclosed that as majority of the non-governmental organizations have just provided medical services instead of dental care services to Cambodian hence he decided to launch the “voluntary dental care services” to benefit the orphans there.
He said that the orphans there had not yelled or resisted while facing the extraction of teeth although they were indeed frightened. They would carry a satisfied smile on their faces subsequent to the extraction of teeth as they were able to chew their food properly finally.
Incomplete equipment causes failures
The “Operation Smile” was not proceeded smoothly when it was first launched in Phnom Penh. Wang and another eight of his team members were prevented to step into the country at the barrier as they had not informed the related local authority in advanced, which had caused a misunderstanding between both sides.
Apart from that, they did not bring along a complete set of equipment and there was no suitable equipment for dental care there hence they failed to carry out their dental care services operation. Instead they could only teach them the correct ways of brushing teeth.
Subsequent to the failure of the first experience, they realized that they have to be well-prepared and study the real situation before lending their hands to the children.
Fortunately, they were not disappointed and upset after experiencing the first failure. Instead, they kept in touch with the Embassy of Cambodia positively after they had returned to Malaysia. In addition, the child care centre in Cambodia has also successfully borrowed the dental clinic located next to the centre from the foreign non-governmental organization.
After they had settled all the entry documents in last December, Wang specially purchased a mobile dental equipment and they again stepped into Phnom Penh on 1 January this year to dedicate their love to the children there.
1 comment:
Reading this article it reminds me of how gracious Christian Malaysian used to help Khmer in refugee camp in Thailand along with UK Christian Group.
I did not have any opportunity to say thanks to them since I left camp for the USA. Finally Christian Malaysians reach our heartland,and help our unfortunate children.Now I would like to say THANK YOU for your good heart and good deed to me in the past as well as to my poor children at this present moment. May God Jesus bless you all and bless Malaysia. And how are you now sister Ling!It's been 34 years...
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