A new program launched in Ahousaht’s Maaqtusiis School has children helping one another to improve dental health.
The tooth brushing program aims to reduce tooth decay by exposing young children to good oral hygiene practices. The younger children will be brushing their teeth every school day under the guidance of teachers and trained peer support students.
Dental therapist Melanie Braker of First Nation Health Authority travelled to Ahousaht Jan. 13, along with Emily Dillabaugh, Vancouver Island Health Authority’s community dental hygienist, and Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council’s Health Promotions worker, Matilda Atleo.
Students from the grades six and seven classes were taught how to guide each child through a tooth care questionnaire. They were also trained in proper sanitary techniques to be used when younger children are brushing their teeth in order to prevent contamination of dental care supplies.
During the visit to the Kindergarten/first grade class, every child had their teeth examined. The first step was the completion of questionnaires, led by Grade 7 students Mariela Frank and Qwammi Robinson.
Then children were called one-by-one to have their teeth temporarily stained purple for their examination. Dillabaugh said they were checking each child for dental work already done and for dental work they may need. The indigo stain highlighted areas of plaque build-up on the teeth, showing where more tooth-brushing attention was needed.
After the examinations the children were guided through a tooth brushing demonstration as they brushed their own teeth.
Information gathered during the program will help build statistics so that program administrators can monitor the effectiveness of the program and justify the cost of the supplies.
Ahousaht is a remote island village with a population of about 1,000 people. Each year hundreds of community members must go to urban centres to receive dental care costing health programs thousands of dollars in expenses.
First Nations Health Authority is paying for the bulk of the new Ahousaht oral hygiene program and the supplies required, with support from VIHA.
Braker said they will duplicate the program to include other Nuu-chah-nulth schools.
Additionally, they will expand the program to include the higher grades right up to Grade 12.
Braker said it is important for Grade 12 students to have tooth decay prevention knowledge, because they are the next generation of young parents, and having the entire community involved in the program is key to its success.
The tooth-brushing program team will adopt a Nuu-chah-nulth name.
Braker says tooth decay is preventable and healthy teeth mean less pain, better health and better self-esteem and more time in school for the children. Prevention of tooth decay in children costs less than the alternative and the benefits of healthy teeth last into adulthood.
Braker has been providing dental services in remote Nuu-chah-nulth communities for the past four years and has noticed improvement in the dental health of the children.
The team will be back in Ahousaht in mid-February.
