Dental Assistant Brenden

We had met Dr. Michael on s/v Mariposa back when we spent Christmas in the atoll of Abemama in Kiribati. He is a dentist and does free dental work for people on pretty much every island he visits. They set up a clinic for the children of Enejalar, and Alex and Brenden were recruited to ferry the kids from the sandbar to the boat via dinghy. But then Brenden had the good fortune to be recruited as a dental assistant, and he even learned how to pull teeth! There was a scary incident, though, when one of the boys went into some sort of seizure, and Brenden recounted that the doctor raised the boy’s legs in order to let more blood flow to his brain and momentarily the boy came out of it. It was speculated that the boy might have had an allergic reaction to the gloves that the doctor wore. It certainly makes you wonder if it’s worth it for Dr. Michael to take risks like that for dental care, because if something serious were to happen it’s not like someone can just be rushed to the hospital. On the other hand, tooth pain when it gets bad enough can be debilitating, so he’s doing a real service and overall the risk is relatively low. But if something were to happen to one of those children it would be a tragedy and the fact the “risk was low” would be small consolation. I lean towards supporting the work he does, and I’m grateful for all involved that the boy ended up being fine that day. Brenden mostly enjoyed his day as the dental assistant, and both Dr. Michael and his companion commented about how mature, curious, and helpful Brenden is. I’m sure that day will be a memory he holds with him for a long time.