Read about how students offered treatments to 406 children in a collaboration between the School of Dentistry and the Rotary Club of Baltimore in the latest issue of “CATALYST” magazine.
Photo: Daphnie Sumah, Class of 2026, explains the importance of oral health to her patient. Photo by Benjamin Hung
It was clear to Daphnie Sumah that the little girl was nervous as she entered the school cafeteria and climbed into the makeshift dental chair. Sumah, a member of the University of Maryland School of Dentistry’s (UMSOD) Class of 2026, took a few moments to chat with the child and explain what to expect.
“I gradually watched her begin to relax in the chair,” Sumah said. “It was a meaningful interaction that reminded me how taking just a few extra moments to build trust can make a big difference in a patient’s experience — especially for children.”
Sumah was among eight dental students who spent their spring break on the Samaná Peninsula, in the northeastern part of the Dominican Republic, providing free oral health care to underserved residents.
As part of a collaboration between UMSOD and the Rotary Club of Baltimore, the students and their faculty supervisors spent March 9-13 offering dental treatments to 406 children. The Rotary Club is a nonprofit dedicated to improving lives locally and globally; additional partners in the effort included local Rotarians and other local health care professionals.
UMSOD Dean’s Faculty members Ryan Linn, DMD, and Nicole Quezada, DMD, served as supervisors as the students visited the communities of Sanchez and Santa Barbara, where they performed extractions, cleanings, and fillings, and demonstrated proper oral health techniques to the children and their families.
‘Eye-Opening Experience’
This was the third year that UMSOD students have traveled to the Dominican Republic. The trips are sponsored by Barry W. Rosenthal, DDS ’78, who in 2019 established the Barry W. Rosenthal ’78 DDS Humanitarian Experiences Fund to provide international volunteer opportunities to dental students.
“For one week, we converted a school cafeteria and classroom into a dental clinic. It was an eye-opening experience,” Sumah said. “The logistics and planning that went into making this clinic a reality were impressive, and it was inspiring to see how everyone came together to make it a success.”
Read more about the work in CATALYST magazine.
The latest issue of "CATALYST" magazine highlights the School of Medicine's impact building safer health systems in The Gambia; the School of Nursing's work with HIV and mental health in Nigeria; a Maryland Carey Law fellowship honoring the legacy of graduate Eric Garvin; UMB's health care pipeline for students from underserved rural areas such as the Eastern Shore; UMB's innovative policing; Five Questions with VP for Research Patrick O'Shea; and much more.