Loma Linda University School of Dentistry: Dentalgram, Nov. 2000

Dentist from Moscow enters International Dentist Program

Dr. Khankichi-Zade treats Marsha and Dasha, conjoined twins who are famous in Russia. A book about them has been published and will soon be translated into English and German.

Dr. Lale Khankichi-Zade, a dentist who has worked for Adventist Health Center in Moscow for the past five years, has entered the School's International Dentist Program (IDP).

Upon completing six months of training with IDP, Dr. Khankichi-Zade will return to Moscow, and will continue practicing dentistry at Adventist Health Center.

After finishing her dental training in the Soviet Union, Dr. Khankichi-Zade worked for three years as a dentist. She then took a short break from dentistry to raise her son, Baku Azerbaijan. Then, she began working for Adventist Health Center in Moscow, and is one of five dentists who work at the Center.

An article about Adventist Health Center appeared in the Autumn, 1996 issue of SCOPE.

The Center, which opened in November, 1992, just 14 months after the Soviet union dissolved into independent states, is the first major health-care facility in Russia administered by the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

According to Dr. Khankichi-Zade, because of the clinic's fine reputation, many dignitaries use these services. The clinic also has contracts with companies in Moscow.

Dr. Lale Khankichi-Zade, a dentist from Adventist Health Center in Moscow has joined the School's International Dentist Program (IDP).

Her patients include members of the diplomatic corps from several embassies, including United States, Canada, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka. Organizations including Doctors Without Borders and the Peace Corps have chosen to send their workers to the clinic for care.

Dr. Khankichi-Zade's patients include Marsha and Dasha, conjoined twins who are famous in Russia. A book about the twins has been published in England and Germany.

Providing quality care to those less fortunate is also important to Dr. Khankichi-Zade and is a part of the clinic's mission. Discounts and two free visits are provided to Church members, families with children, and retired citizens.

Dentists from the Center spend three to four days a month traveling to churches where they treat members and people from the local community at no cost. "We are able to speak about God with these patients," she says, "and to tell them about the Adventist Church. We also leave gifts of religious books, and dental supplies including toothbrushes, dental floss, and toothpaste."

Dr. Khankichi-Zade's patients in Moscow include Marsha and Dasha, who are conjoined twins.

In addition, the Center provides free dental care to children in an orphanage run by Moscow College in a system known as a "family orphanage." In this system, local families house from four to 14 children in their homes.

As she worked with the staff at the Center, Dr. Khankichi-Zade learned more about the Adventist faith, and four years ago, she was baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

She is looking forward to the advanced experience she will receive in the IDP. "I will see cases," she says, "and gain experience that is possible to get only in a student clinic." She also hopes to learn more about implant dentistry during her time at the School of Dentistry.

According to James M. Crawford, SD'60; MPH, executive associate dean, School of Dentistry, and dental director for the health ministry department, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Dr. Khankichi-Zade joins a special group of missionary dentists from India, Africa, Asia, and Moscow who have completed this program at LLU to enhance their service to the world.

Dr. Khankichi-Zade's tuition has been fully funded, with half contributed by National Association of Seventh-day Adventist Dentists (NASDAD), and the other half by the School of Dentistry. "This program for international dentists is a wonderful gift to mission service," says Dr. Crawford.

Realizing the importance for dentists worldwide to receive advanced training at Loma Linda University, the School has designated the program as a major item in strategic planning.