The Digital Dental Mobile Clinic will head to Nan’ao, Yilan County.
The Digital Dental Mobile Clinic, founded by the Department of Dentistry, will begin to provide oral health examination services in Nan’ao, Yilan County, in order to alleviate the difficulties of local residents who have to travel to the city for medical treatment.
Nan’ao Township is located on the border between Yilan and Hualien and is the largest in area, but has the lowest population density in Yilan County. Most medical needs are met mainly through medical clinics and the NYCU Hospital’s mobile medical unit. However, for the inhabitants of four villages, Dongyue, Jinyue, Jinyang, and Aohua, traveling to the hospital for medical care often takes nearly an hour due to their geographical location.
The First Digital Dental Mobile Clinic in Taiwan
With the support of Ms. Chen Ya-Fang of Altruistic+ Social Enterprise, the Bureau of Foreign Trade, and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council, Professors Lin Yuan-Min, Lee Shyh-Yuan, Chang Kuo-Wei, and others from the Department of Dentistry worked and funded to transform a nine-seat mini-bus into a Digital Dental Mobile Clinic. Inside the vehicle, there is digital dental equipment such as computer numerical control (CNC) milling machines, 3D printers, oral scanners, and dental design software, all of these are award-winning products from Taiwanese companies such as PUMA Industrial Co., Ltd., BenQ Corporation, and Young Optics. This year, in collaboration with the dental treatment vehicle of the affiliated hospital, they will embark on a medical tour, bringing advanced dental care to remote areas, increasing the speed and quality of treatment, and introducing modern digital dentistry in Nan’ao.
This Digital Dental Mobile Clinic is the first in Taiwan, possibly the first in the world. From 12 May, it will begin its health checks for public welfare in rural areas. The plan is to visit the Dongyue, Jinyue, Jinyang, and Aohua Culture and Health Stations, as well as the Bi Hou and Wuta Elementary School in Nan’ao Township.
Professor Lin Yuan-Min explained that digital dentistry could streamline the denture fabrication process. Traditionally, patients had to take molds and send them to urban areas to obtain dentures, which was time-consuming. Now, with the Digital Dental Mobile Clinic, these procedures can be performed on-site, significantly reducing patient waiting times.
NYCU Deep Engagement in Nan’ao, Yilan
In addition to the Digital Dental Mobile Clinic, NYCU has been collaborating with the affiliated hospital in recent years to promote the ‘Stars of the Tribe’ project. This initiative brings together the resources of the College of Nursing, College of Medicine, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Pharmacy, and College of Electrical Engineering to provide medical and education services to Nan’ao. The project aims to foster local medical talents and promote regional development, intending to stimulate the fire of health and medical education in this beautiful city and establish sustainable medical practices in remote areas.
