The Madison County Health Department is hoping to bring Brighter Futures, Brighter Smiles to local students with a new dental program.
The mission of the program is to improve and promote oral health care among the children of Madison County and Berea Community schools by providing free services.
“Dental health is one of the most neglected areas for all people, especially people who are in an at-risk environment,” said Marsha Deaton, registered dental hygienist for the health department, who will be working with dental assistant Tina Johnson and volunteer dentists. “We feel like if we can intervene at an early age that we can prevent future problems and hopefully instill life habits that will enable them to take care of their teeth so they are healthy and happy when they are adults.”
In this first year of the program, Brighter Future, Brighter Smiles will be providing dental sealant services for second-grade students.
Dr. Mary Oldfield of Berea volunteered her time Friday to screen children at Kingston Elementary, looking for tooth decay and other dental problems and identifying which students need dental sealant to be put on their teeth by Deaton beginning next week.
“If they have a problem that needs further attention, we will refer them to a dentist in the county that will be able to take care of that,” Deaton said.
The program is only the second oral health program in Kentucky that will be coordinated by a registered dental hygienist.
“Initially, it will just be for the second grade, but we hope to eventually add the sixth grade as well,” Deaton said. “By second grade, most children have their first molars or six-year molars and you place sealant on your molar teeth. By sixth grade, you usually get your 12-year molars around that age. So, those are the target areas were looking at.”
Brighter Future, Brighter Smiles also will include an educational element throughout the year as health officials educate students about dental health.
“I think that it’s awesome that we can create that habit of good dental health early,” said Madison County Schools Superintendent Mike Caudill. “Also, if you don’t feel good, you’re not going to be a good performer in the classroom.”
Bryan Marshall can be reached at bmarshall@richmondregister.com or 624-6691.
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Health department hopes to improve dental care with new program
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