Dental News - Olympics donate medical, dental leftovers to Haiti

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Olympics donate medical, dental leftovers to Haiti

A CC-177 Globemaster III aircraft taking off from 8 Wing Trenton air force base. (DTI/Photo courtesy of Canada Air Force, Serge Peters)
Daniel Zimmermann, DTI

Daniel Zimmermann, DTI

Sat. 27 March 2010

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NEW YORK, USA/LEIPZIG, Germany: Unused dental and medical supplies from the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver are currently being flown out to Canadian medical teams in Haiti to help the victims of the devistating 12 January earthquake. A first shipment of half a ton containing soft goods and surgical instruments took off today from an Air Force base in Trenton.

The remaining inventory of supplies will be stored in Vancouver and shipped with doctors and volunteers as future teams are deployed to Haiti, officials from the Olympic Organising Committee said.

The shipments are part of the 2010 Olympic Truce effort, a foundation set up by the International Olympic Committee in 2000 in order to to promote Olympic Ideals such as peace and friendship and turn them into concrete action. The donation to Haiti represents approximately C$125,000 (US$121,700) in value in medical and dental supplies. The Olympic Organising Committee with its partners also announced a US$292,200 donation to UNICEF earlier this month to further support relief efforts in Haiti.

“Our medical team had access to top quality medical and dental equipment and supplies in support of athletes at the 2010 Games,” said Dr Jack Taunton, Chief Medical Officer for the 2010 Olympics. “Our work is done and as medical professionals our first thoughts are always to whom else needs help, so we are pleased to support our medical colleagues working so hard in Haiti."

According to latest figures of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti, the 12 January earthquake killed more than 200,000 people and left millions homeless.

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