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Potential for Being a Future Branch President or Bishop

In the fall of 2002 a call came from a secretary in the Las Vegas mission to inquire what the Missionary Medical Advisory Committee's policy was for treating missionaries in the field who require emergency dental treatment. She reported that a young missionary from Bolivia serving in that mission had fallen off his bicycle and fractured his four maxillary anterior teeth. He had seen a local LDS dentist for emergency treatment, but now the concern was what could be done for him to restore his mouth in the few weeks he had remaining before returning to Bolivia. The mission office felt there would be little opportunity for adequate treatment once he returned to his small village home in rural Bolivia.

The MMAC had no policy or program in place at that time to handle such problems. A local LDS dentist in Las Vegas on whom we rely heavily for dental direction in that area was contacted. He researched the situation and reported back that the dentist managing the case was a reliable, skilled, ethical practitioner who would take responsibility for repairing the damage and restoring the missionary's mouth before his mission was completed in a few weeks. It was suggested that perhaps a flipper anterior partial denture could be constructed, given the short time remaining for treatment and the potential for incurring rather high costs in doing more extensive procedures.

When this was relayed to the treating dentist, his response was revealing. He said, "No, I will not make him a temporary removable prosthesis. It would probably fail or be lost or broken soon after his return to his village home.

This young man has the potential for being a branch president or bishop someday, and he needs to be shown what can be accomplished with modern ideas and concepts and a positive attitude. My staff and I will work extra hours and on Saturdays, if necessary, and we will provide him with the same quality dentistry I would provide for any of my regular patients and it will be our charitable contribution to this missionary who has given two years of his life to serve the Church."

Magnificent! One would hope this dentist is a member of the Academy.

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