The Dental Services Unit within the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Nutrition is partnering with summer camps to provide oral health screenings and basic dental treatments such as cleanings and fillings to children and teens, via the mobile dental bus. In the next few weeks, the fully equipped mobile dental bus will be stationed at various summer camps in the north of the island.

This initiative aims to bridge the gap in access to preventative dental care to children during the summer break, by bringing the services directly to them.

Dental Hygienist Cheryl St. Cyr says this is the first time launching this initiative at the summer camps and is hopeful it will make a meaningful impact. “We have always had mobile clinics in schools, churches, Community Centres so that we can bring the services of cleaning for the people, children. They would engage the Dental Services Unit and we would come to get it done. But now there is the bus, it augments the programme where the clinic is taken out of the clinic and we are out there bringing the service to the people. We go to the schools and get what needs to be done, but the bus now augments the programmes that we have put in place for our nation to understand the merits of good oral hygiene.”

St. Cyr says the mobile dental bus is convenient and valuable to supporting oral health in children. “Our teeth help us to speak, our teeth help us to eat properly, our teeth build up the confidence of someone. You can go anywhere and smile instead of frowning or covering your mouth, you are received better. Our teeth also give our face a nice structure; it makes you look younger as well as good oral health, it augments good overall health.”