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Volume2 Issue3
The Royal CanadianDental Corps:
FORENSICODONTOLOGY
Canada’smilitarydental serviceshave lookedaftertheoralhealth
needsofCanada’stroops inbothWorldWars,Korea,Afghanistan,
andservedonmanyotherpeacemaking,peacekeeping,humanitarian
and forensicoperations. Inthe lead-uptothe100thanniversaryofthe
RoyalCanadianDentalCorps(RCDC) inMay2015, this isthefinal
article inaseriesthathasbroughtto lightthehistoryoftheRCDC
overthe lastcentury,celebratingtheheritage,accomplishmentsand
dedicationofthedental servicespersonneloftheCanadianArmed
Forces.
Through its capabilities in forensic
odontology, theRCDC supports
theGovernment of Canada in its
humanitariananddisaster-relief efforts.
In response to theSwissair Flight 111crash
near Peggy’sCove, NovaScotia, in1998,
theprovincial coroner asked the federal
government todeployaDisaster Victim
Identification (DVI) team. Forty-five
RCDCpersonnel assistedwithdental
identifications, supporting theworkof
thecoroner and theRCMPDVI team.
After analyzingover 2000 radiographs
and313post-mortem specimens,
RCDCpersonnel aided in102of the
149completed identifications.
Therehavebeen several other occasions
when theRCMP sought RCDC’s forensic
odontologycapability to support their
DVImissions: theHaiti earthquake in
2010, theResoluteBayFirstAir 6560plane
crash in2011, anda terrorist incident in
NorthAfrica in2013. Inaddition, RCDC
personnelwereput on stand-by status in
2011, following the tsunami in Japanand
earthquake inNewZealand.
TheRCDCalsocontinues to support the
forensicanthropologistsof theCanadian
ArmedForces’ DirectorateofHistory
andHeritage in identifying remainsof
Canadianmilitarypersonnel uncovered
on thebattlefieldsofWWI andWWII.
Thiswork supportsCanada’sGeneva
Convention requirement to support the
identificationof fallenCanadian soldiers,
sailors andaviatorsof pastwars and
recent conflicts.
TheDental Corpsmaintains theCanadian
Forces ForensicOdontologyResponse
Team (CFFORT), anestablishedgroupof
12DentalOfficers andDental Technicians
onhigh readiness status that assist the
RCMPor police inother jurisdictions
(inCanadaor abroad) inDVI operations,
whencalledupon todo so. Additional
DentalOfficers andDental Technicians
are trainedand ready toaugment the
CFFORT team, asneeded.
Developingand sustaining this capacity
ina relatively small organization requires
ongoingcollaborationwithanumber
of Canadian institutions. TheRCDC
hasgreatlybenefitted from, and relied
significantlyon, its collaborationwith
Dr. DavidSweet, director of theBureauof
Legal Dentistryat theUniversityof British
Columbia, and the trainingprovided
byhis teamof experienced forensic
practitioners. Themilitary-tailoredcourse
createdbyDr. Sweet hasbeenprovided
to theRCDC for anumber of years.
In June2013, participation in thecourse
RCDCalso continues to support the forensic anthropologists
of theCanadianArmedForces’Directorate ofHistoryand
Heritage in identifying remains ofCanadianmilitary
personnel uncovered on the battlefields ofWWI andWWII.
