A Different World

I just returned from a couple weeks of hunting in Zimbabwe. While I was there, I visited the largest laboratory in that country and did a presentation to about 60 Zimbabwean dentists. It was an eye opening experience, and one that makes me truly appreciate what a great country we live in. Iíll be doing a comprehensive story, complete with photos later, but in a nutshell, here are some striking details.

There are 241 registered dentists in the entire country, though my hosts estimate that as many as half may have already left the country. Peter and Rodney have about a three-week back log of cases, because they estimate 90 percent of the work being done is done in their laboratory. The majority of their business is PFM restorations, however a growing number of zirconia crowns are being outsourced to South Africa.

That in itself is a problem, as the country is experiencing somewhere in the area of 3500 percent inflation and most countries will not except the Zimbabwe dollar for payment. Additionally, they must deal with daily power outages, one of which lasted 16 hours during my stay. Can you imagine what that does to production? Unscheduled outages, of an indefinite period?

Pick up and delivery is handled by a team of runners riding motorcycles with cargo boxes lashed to the back. Fuel shortages can make drivers wait as long as two days for fuel, however, fuel coupons can be purchased and used at private depots, if the coupons and fuel are available.

Food was extremely hard to come by and many people resort to buying their groceries at a number of roadside stands where locals sell homegrown fruit, vegetables and other staples, including warm bottles of milk. One grocery store where we went had only bottled water, tampons and 9-volt batteries on their shelves. After a seven hour drive from the Zambezi Valley we stopped at the only pizza store in town, and after waiting nearly an hour to place our order, found only cheese was on the menu.

Despite these hardships, my hosts and the dentists I met are all very proud Zimbabweans who shrug their shoulders, smile and utter the Zimbabwean national anthem, ìNo worries, weíll make a plan.î The laboratory was clean, in a beautiful neighborhood, shrouded in a shady canopy of trees. The technicians, some of whom have been working there for more than 30 years, are all happy, very talented, and seemed delighted to have a visitor come to see them.

They have only top of the line equipment including new Vita furnaces, high quality hand pieces and microscopes. Our brothers and sisters in Zimbabwe face many of the same challenges we face: a lack of qualified technicians, the high cost of new technology, and then a world of other problems we can only imagine trying to deal with. Probably the only threat they donít face is the competition from offshore laboratories. But in a country where many people only make about $10 U.S. per month, they just may be the next offshore destination. The quality is definitely there, the price would be right, and without a doubt, these people know how to work for a living.

In the meantime, theyíll continue to bask in the African sunshine, and always Make a plan.