ATSU-ASDOH alumna crosses the globe to provide oral healthcare
Posted: August 14, 2013
April Westfall, DMD, ’10 of Lake Tahoe, will be heading to a remote part of southern Sudan in late August to provide oral healthcare to individuals in this isolated area. This is the 11th trip for Dr. Westfall, who has traveled to Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, and the Dominican Republic within the last six years to provide dental services to the underserved. This will be her first trip to Africa where she will treat children at an orphanage that cares for more than 200 children.
Dr. Westfall was inspired to take her first “mission” trip as a first-year dental student at A.T. Still University’s Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health (ATSU-ASDOH). “We had the opportunity to go on trips to remote areas to provide oral healthcare to the underserved, and I loved it,” said Dr. Westfall. “With such need for care, the trips were incredibly rewarding. I am grateful to Dr. Dillenberg for supporting all the trips during dental school. He granted time off and donated funds to help myself and other classmates who participated. If it were not for ATSU-ASDOH’s support in allowing and facilitating me, I would not have experienced what has turned into a lifelong passion.”
Dr. Westfall said practicing dentistry in these remote areas is not easy, and the situations are usually pretty drastic with many adults and children having badly decayed teeth. “Travel can also be nerve-wracking as well,” she said. It will take Dr. Westfall three days of travel to reach her destination in Sudan where she will work for two weeks. Dr. Westfall welcomes email inquiries about her trips.