Article Information

• ARTICLE_POSTED_BY: Haiti Place Staff
• ARTICLE_POSTED_ON: May 19, 2015
• Views : 1215
• Likes : 1
• Category : Other
• Description : <strong>The Haitian Diaspora is scattered all over the US and across the rest of the world. Most of them are not well connected and may not be aware of what other members in their fields are doing. This is why the 11th Department has created groups by industry to connect professionals in the same field, and foster communication and collaboration</strong>.

Overview

• Dr. Herbert Ludwig Saint Jean

  The Haitian Diaspora is scattered all over the US and across the rest of the world. Most of them are not well connected and may not be aware of what other members in their fields are doing. This is why the 11th Department has created groups by industry to connect professionals in the same field, and foster communication and collaboration.

  One of the active members of the 11th Department is dentist Herbert Ludwig Saint Jean from Charlotte, North Carolina.

  He signed up on the 11th Department to stay connected with fellow Haitians from all over the world and to be informed of what they do.

  Dr. Saint Jean believes that Haitians from all over should be more connected online and offline in order to become a stronger community.

  Dr. Saint Jean has studied dentistry in Haiti before he moved to the US, and for a number of years, he has been going back to Haiti on medical missions. He shared his perspective on the Haitian dentistry sector and how the Diaspora can be more involved.

  One of the biggest needs is education

  Dr. Saint Jean is convinced that one of the biggest needs related to the dental health in Haiti is education.

  "Better educated patients will be more aware of their needs and how to address them," said Dr. Saint Jean.

  He gave an example:

  "A lot of Haitians believe that it's a natural fact to lose your teeth as you age. This is not true, but it's a very common belief. If educated properly, it will help to address this misbelief, this misinformation, and then we can move from there."

  The next thing is making care available

  Dr. Saint Jean noted that dental care is not readily available in Haiti, which is why the next big step should be to make care available.

  "We only have one dental school. There's a lack of providers. But the reason why there is a lack of providers is partly because the providers feel like they have invested time and money, and they want to be compensated for their work. But if they go in an area where people are not well educated about dental care and only come to have their teeth extracted, the dental professionals may believe that they would not be able to make a living," said Dr. Saint Jean.

  "It's a complex problem, and I think these are the two areas that definitely we can start to address."

  Haitian Dental Society needs to be formed

  Dr. Saint Jean believes that the Diaspora could contribute more to the dental health in Haiti, if they were better connected and organized.

  He noticed that most of the doctors going on dental missions to Haiti are foreigners. However, there are many Haitian dentists in the Diaspora that speak the language and that could be more present in Haiti on medical missions, as well as with other initiatives.

  "If one is calling himself or herself Haitian, I think that's something that one should do. Like the saying goes: To whom much is given, much is expected," said Dr. Saint Jean.

  He also noted that while there is a Haitian Medical Society in the US, no one has created a Haitian Dental Society yet.

  "This is something I would be interested to have a conversation about with like-minded people to see if there is something that we could put in place that would have some level of permanency, some level of continuity," shared Dr. Saint Jean.

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  Dr. Herbert Ludwig Saint Jean is the owner of Midtown General & Cosmetic Dentistry in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is a graduate of the New York University College of Dentistry where he received his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree in 2006. Prior to this, he received a dental degree with honors at the State University of Haiti. He completed an Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency and fellowship at the University of Connecticut Health Center. Dr. Saint Jean also earned a master’s degree in Public Health from the School of Medicine and Community Health at the University of Connecticut Health Center in 2003. Dr. Saint Jean is a Board Certified General Dentist who emphasizes preventive dentistry and education.