Two dental clinics built by the disaster response and humanitarian aid organization AmeriCares are restoring access to care for thousands of survivors for the first time since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
The clinics recently opened in Minamisanriku, where the dual disasters wiped out 95% of the coastal town's infrastructure, including all six dental care facilities. AmeriCares partnered with the Miyagi Dental Association to build the clinics and worked closely with the Miyagi Prefectural government to develop the project.
Funded by $400,000 in AmeriCares grants, the new transitional clinics are expected to operate for up to 10 years, serving a population of 10,000.
"These new clinics are serving one of the most devastated towns in the whole Tohoku region, and a population greatly in need of dental care," said Ella Gudwin, AmeriCares vice president of emergency response, in a press release. "With people dislocated, living in shelters, and many without access to running water for months, daily oral hygiene routines fell by the wayside. For the large elderly population with a greater prevalence of tooth decay and related complications, this began to present a health risk."
