A HUMANITARIAN team of dentists is heading to the Ukraine to help in the fight against tooth decay and gum disease.

The team, known as the Smile-menders, includes orthodontist Richard Swift and dental practitioner Brendon Ball, who practice in Swindon.

Their destination will be heading to the town of Charkassy in the centre of the former Eastern Bloc.

They will be joined by Linda Swift, another dental practitioner, and Natasha Ball who is their Ukrainian interpreter. They plan to depart on their overland 2,000-mile journey late next month.

Once in the Ukraine they will deliver dental aid in the form of equipment and supplies, as well as providing advice and experience to their Eastern European counter-parts.

Dr Ball said: "The people of Cherkassy are very proud. Their country is in the centre of Europe and they are in the centre of the Ukraine."

The city is home to around 750,000 inhabitants, with many people employed in the chemical industry.

"Life seems like normal," explained Dr Ball. "The people there look like you and me but it's only when you go there with a translator and read signs and notices, that the differences become clear.

"The hospitals are lacking basic equipment they have one stethoscope per floor and medicines are available but at a cost. Getting basic health care to these people is a real priority."

Although Ukrainian health care is rapidly improving, it is still far from Western standards, and much money is being spent caring for those suffering from illnesses resulting from the Chernobyl reactor accident.

Dr Ball added: "You are advised not to swim in the main river through Cherkassy because of the high radiation level, but when there is a hot summer that's what people do."

Tooth decay rates up to 10 times higher than the UK average and many people, including children, are not even given local anaesthetic during treatment. Smilemenders aims to improve patient experiences through the provision of dental filling materials and local anaesthetics. It became a registered charity in 2003.

Dr Ball said: "You may not have heard of Smilemenders here, but we're very big in Ukraine."

In July they will be delivering an entire dental suite of equipment and supplies to an outlying area.

The charity will also be replenishing supplies to surgeries, some of which were originally provided by other organisations. KemDent of Purton in Wiltshire has donated filling materials for the project, earning itself the gratitude of the whole team.

In addition, Smilemenders is sponsoring a Ukrainian engineer to be trained in equipment mainten-ance.

The charity has already made care accessible to many hundreds of patients in Ukraine and the good news is that Smilemenders plans to extend its activities beyond Ukraine and has been approached for assistance in Cuba.

If you feel that you can help in any way please contact Smilemenders on 01793 873044 or visit www.smilemenders.org.

Anthony Osborne