About Us
The Micronesia Dental Service Project (MDSP) was co-founded in 2005 by Dr. Barry Staley, DDS, a retired periodontist from Santa Cruz, California, his wife Stephanie Staley, librarian at Cabrillo College, his daughter Desha Staley-Raatior and her Micronesian husband Vid Raatior to help the forgotten children in the remote and small outer islands in the Pacific island nation of Micronesia. In 2011, MDSP became a sponsored project of the United Charitable Programs (UCP), a federally registered 501(c)3 public charity to provide tax deductible donations for supporters. In 2013 as part of the long-term goal, the MDSP became a project of the health care initiative of the Fanapi Foundation, which is also a sponsored project of UCP. Dr. Staley has joined the Fanapi Foundation’s Advisory Board.
Our Mission
MDSP’s mission is to make quality dental care and equipment accessible to the impoverished people in the Pacific island nation of Micronesia specifically the under-served population living on the small and remote outer islands.
Our Goals
SHORT-TERM GOALS
1. Focus on supporting dental care services in Chuuk State, the most struggling of the FSM states.
2. Recruit a team of dentists to donate their time, energy, and supplies to operate free dental clinics for the underserved population in the outer islands of Micronesia.
3. Recruit hygienists to lead preventive dental health education programs.
4. Recruit a team of technicians, dental assistants, and translators to serve on a Support Team to prepare and manage all dental clinics.
5. Bring all necessary equipment and supplies such as compressors, generators, and other necessary supplies for a fully functional clinic in the outer islands so as not to impact the limited local resources.
6. Provide a pre-departure orientation program for the MDSP team to ensure a respect for local protocol, cultures, and traditions.
7. Partner with local leaders, communities, and government to provide cultural experiences between the local community and the visiting volunteers.
LONG-TERM GOALS
1. Expand MDSP’s capacity to offer more opportunities for volunteer dentists and other medical personnel to travel to the outer islands throughout Micronesia to provide much needed health services.
2. Provide sustainable community educational opportunities for sustainable preventative care.
3. Support the efforts of local dentists and other medical personnel by providing training opportunities, equipment, and other collaborative partnerships.
4. Build capacity of local community communities in the outer islands of Chuuk for a non-governmental organization (NGO) called Fanapi Foundation to address long-term needs in the outer islands including educational opportunities, healthcare, advocacy, and improvement of social services.