As a child Raquel Sagon had visited a dental clinic in Linden where there was no dentist on duty. She decided then and there to do something about it by studying to become a dentist herself and increasing the number in the country.
Over the years, she toyed with becoming a paediatrician, but during the year she spent as a biology student she reaffirmed her belief that dentistry was the way to go. It was at this point she realised that while many of her peers were talking about entering the medical field, there were just a few who wanted to enrol in dental school.
Today, she is Dr Raquel Sagon-Kendall, and she is employed with the Cheddi Jagan Dental Clinic. A prosthodontist, she specializes in denture making and fitting.
While examining the mouths of others might not be attractive to many, for Dr Sagon-Kendall, putting smiles on her patients’ faces and assisting the older ones to chew their food is rewarding.
The mother of two (a five-year-old daughter and a seven-month-old son) who has been at the dental clinic since 2015, said she is where she is today because of the dedication of her parents Randolph and Evette Sagon, a taxi driver and a housewife.
Sitting across from me at a modest table in her office, Dr Sagon-Kendall spoke at length about fixing the mouths of others and how with all the other responsibilities she also found the time to start a small business that targets the natural tresses of women.
Fulfilling
After five years as a practicing dentist, she said it has been fulfilling as she has set goals and is disciplined in achieving them.
Working in the government system has its challenges, as she pointed out that even though they were trained to do certain procedures they cannot practice all of them because the government facility does not offer those services. In some instances, they have to refer patients to private clinics.
They see a lot of patients and 28-year-old Dr Sagon-Kendall said she is always busy. Working in the prosthodontist department means that that they do rehabilitative work for patients who have lost teeth.
Patients are seen in that department by appointment only and one of the constraints, according to Dr Sagon-Kendall, is the fact that the department is not equipped with a dental technician. There are some dental assistants, but they do not have all the knowledge and may be stumped if faced with a difficult case. While the dental surgeon would be turned to for assistance, she noted that they are not trained in all the areas.
“At times it becomes a little difficult, but I would say we manage, we get by…,” she said, as she noted that many Guyanese do not undertake the career of dental technician since not even the University of Guyana offers that programme.
But all in all, a day in the working life of Dr Sagon-Kendall is rewarding.
“I deal with older patients or as you would say geriatric patients and so it is fulfilling to see that they have lost their teeth due to whatever reason and I help them to get some amount of mastication because if you don’t chew your food properly you can develop other medical issues,” she said.
The patients spend long periods in the dental chair, and it is always pleasing to hear them say they are satisfied at the end of the process and also when they compliment her for having “a lot of patience,” she said.
The youngest of four siblings who grew up in Wismar and then Amelia’s Ward, Dr Sagon-Kendall described herself as an achiever. Her mom ensured that she and her sister read and completed their homework and at one point she even taught them at home.
“My mother, she was a pushy person for us to learn because every evening we had to sit with our books. We had to read, and she was teaching us division even before we did it in school,” she said with laughter.
Her brothers were older, but she and her sister were the ones being pushed. By the time they were in Primary Two, the two girls were disciplined, and their mother took a backseat. At one point they had no electricity, Dr Sagon-Kendall recalled, and they were forced to “literally burn the lamp” to study. But it never barred them completing their work as according to her “there was light” and they did what they had to do.
While she gained a place at the Bishops’ High School, she was awarded a spot at President’s College and she spent her first term excelling not only in academics but also sports. However, the 2005 Great Flood forced her to return to Linden and she was eventually enrolled in the Mackenzie High School, where she spent the remainder of her high school days.
When she started attending the University of Guyana, Dr Sagon-Kendall said, it was difficult as her parents basically had to maintain two households financially, but with assistance from her older brother and other relatives, she managed.
Her husband of six years, police officer Joel Kendall, who was her boyfriend at the time, also assisted her during those tough times.
“I must be thankful to all of those who supported me on my journey to becoming a dentist. It wasn’t easy,” she said.
In her third year she became employed with Courts Guyana as a nighttime caller, and this saw her being on the job Monday to Friday and sometimes on the weekends. It was during that time she learnt to manage her spending and save money in order to sustain herself.
Being a staunch Seventh-Day Adventist also presented a challenge as Dr Sagon-Kendall declined to attend classes on Saturdays, but in the end she was successful.
Now that she has children of her own, the young wife and mother said she at times finds it challenging, but she added “I like challenges” and like her mother she has been pushing her daughter “since day one”.
“I mean you go home, and you do what you have to do, you can’t sit down you have to be on it,” she said of the multi-tasking.
Amethyst Hair and Body
While juggling a full-time job, being a wife and mother and lecturing at the University of Guyana, Dr Sagon-Kendall has also found the time to open a small business under the name Amethyst Hair and Body which targets natural hair.
She has one product out, a hair butter that helps to strengthen the ends of hair and keep it moisturized. She said she has worn her hair naturally for many years, recalling that the experience of braiding her permed hair resulted in it breaking, which made the decision for her.
“That was a major issue for me because I couldn’t take it,” she said. And while her mom was upset that she cut her hair and went natural, for her it was just the right decision.
Over the years, she has seen a boom in the market for natural hair products. She loved making products for her own hair and decided to turn it into a small business.
She said her mixture is thick and to properly strengthen the ends of hair it needs to be applied there as opposed to the roots since because of the kinkiness of natural hair, placing it on the roots can mean that it never reaches the ends.
(Amethyst Hair and Body can be found on Facebook and to place orders persons can contact 683-3547.)
