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MALUK TIMOR DENTAL CPD PROGRAM
Who do you know that deserves the
Editor’s note: Maluk Timor is a well established NGO recognition of ICD Fellowship?
in Timor Leste. At the September 2021 Section VIII The future and strength of our Section depend on
Board meeting, the Board approved the first grant Fellows within our Section nominating colleagues
application ever received from Maluk Timor. The who deserve the recognition of ICD Fellowship
purpose of the grant is to establish a CPD program for the significant contributions they make to our
for dental nurses in Community Health Centres profession and to the community.
across Dili and for volunteer dental nurses working at The Section VIII nomination guidelines and form
Community Health Centres in Timor Leste. can be downloaded from the Section VIII website
(CLICK HERE) or can be requested from the
About Maluk Timor Admin Officer at admin@icdsectionviii.org. The
guidelines give the criteria used by the Board to
evaluate nominees. In addition, Board members
and members of local nominating committees
are happy to discuss the suitability of potential
nominees with Fellows in advance of making
Maluk means your people, kinsfolk, family, closest nominations. For reference, a copy of the current
friends. Maluk Timor is an Australian and Timorese Section VIII database can be found on the website
NGO motivated to advance primary healthcare in (CLICK HERE).
Timor Leste by a sense of kinship and solidarity with
the Timorese people. Maluk Timor was established
9 years ago to fill an unmet need for health services Timor Leste ‘WHO-MOH oral health strategy’ (2020-
by providing care in tuberculosis, HIV, malnutrition, 2025) mandates an increase in upskilling is necessary
rheumatic heart disease and other fields. Since then, towards dental disease prevention.
Maluk Timor has witnessed tremendous growth in the However, a major problem is that the dental nurses
health services provided by the Timorese Ministry of have received limited professional development
Health that meet the direct care needs of the people and little ongoing support to enable them to carry
of Timor Leste. This means the role of Maluk Timor the burden of providing sustained care for the
has shifted to have a bigger, longer lasting impact by population. While other parts of the health sector
working with Timorese health colleagues and the have received much more attention, the oral health
community to support a stronger health system. workforce remains underserved.

Maluk Timor draws upon international clinical As part of Maluk Timor’s five-year plan for oral
expertise and local experience in healthcare delivery health, the MT Oral Health Team will be working
to support the Timor Leste government to deliver collaboratively with the MOH and partners to
quality healthcare in Timorese health facilities, by design and implement upskilling modules that can
Timorese health workers. For more information, visit be delivered and continued by the current MOH
the Maluk Timor website (CLICK HERE). systems via Institute Nasional Saude (INS). INS

Excerpt from the Maluk Timor Grant Application was established in 2005 (previously known as the
National Centre for Health Education, established
Currently, the Timorese Ministry of Health (MOH) in 2001) as an autonomous body under MOH. INS
have registered seven dentists and forty-six dental delivers post-graduate training and upskilling to all
nurses in Timor Leste, with an average of one dental health professionals.
nurse per 59,478 people. Dental nurses are the main
providers of primary oral health care in Timor Leste Through upskilling, MT will trial and assess a
and they are charged with managing oral disease competency-based system that could then be
in the population. With comprehensive treatment replicated for continued professional development
of dental problems beyond the capacity of the (CPD) on various topics over five years. Dental nurses
existing dental health workforce, the MOH focuses upskilled in Dili Community Health Centres (CHC’s)
on oral health promotion and the prevention of funded through the ICD grant would be characterised
oral diseases, while making emergency dental care as ‘model’ dental professionals and each year the
available throughout the country. Moreover, the Maluk Timor training program will increase their

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