Capt Rodrigo Marchessi
First published in
SFOR Informer#167, November, 2003

On 22 September 2003, Captain Beth Dover, a member of the Royal Army Dental Corps attached to the 1st Battalion Highlanders in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Capt Rodrigo Marchessi of the UK Battle Group Civil-Military Cooperation cell, paid a visit to a local school in Knezevo.

Knezevo - The task of selecting the school was given to the 1st Gurkha Platoon based in a Platoon House in Knezevo. Ideally, the number of children to be visited was to range from 20 to 30, with the age ranging between 8 and 10 years old. At the same time, the Dental Officer would complete a survey to compare the results with an previous one done locally in 1998 with children in the UK. Based on these criteria and operational priorities, the Platoon chose a school in their area.
The day began with a presentation about dental care, food and the importance of oral hygiene. Once the presentation was finished, the Dental Officer asked the children some questions about what they had learned. Those who answered correctly were given a present from the UKBG. One could easily see how happy the children were upon receiving their gift, this was clearly a good method of reinforcing the messages given during the presentation.
Open Wide!
According to the schedule, it was time to move on to the next part of the visit - checking the children's teeth. This was an important point, as it would reveal whether there had been any improvement from the last survey. Staff told the children to go outside and form a line so they could all be looked at. Capt Dover proceeded to examine what turned out to be more than 30 children, after which each child received a toothbrush. Assistants wrote down the results while each one passed through the line one by one.
Capt Dover commented, "It has been an unforgettable experience for me helping local children by telling them how to take care of their teeth. I could feel their enthusiasm when I was examining them. As a dentist, this is a worthwhile activity of which I am extremely proud."
After more examinations, the task was finally over and it was time to return to the UKBG Camp in Mrkonjic Grad. However, there was one last picture left to take - one with Capt Dover and her assistants, the children, and of course, their toothbrushes.