Kent State College of Nursing Participates in Smiles for Ohio Program (12/11/2008)
Kent State College of Nursing Participates in Smiles for Ohio Program (12/11/2008)
Children enrolled in the Ravenna Head Start program are brightly smiling thanks to the efforts of Kent State University College of Nursing faculty and students.
This fall, 21 children at the Ravenna Head Start received free dental exams and fluoride varnish treatments, which help to prevent cavities from forming. The exams and varnish were offered through services led by Mary Calabro, director of the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program at Kent State; Nora McGonagle, a health coordinator at Portage Learning Center; and Dr. Kris Drummond of the Akron Community Resource Center.
Smiles for Ohio, a fluoride varnish program funded by the Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services, supports the notion that primary care providers in Ohio should promote oral health while working with children.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, statistics show that, in 2003, only three percent of Ohio Medicaid-eligible children less than three years of age received any dental services through Medicaid. However, 78 percent received medical services.
Since primary care providers are more than likely to see these children, they have a unique opportunity to provide fluoride varnish before early caries, or tooth decay, form, says Calabro.
Calabro and 10 Kent State pediatric and family nurse practitioner students received training from the Ohio Department of Health to administer the fluoride varnish to the children. Sandy Brado, a dental hygienist from the Ohio Department of Health, Oral Health Division, trained the students and provided all of the varnish and necessary supplies for the application process.
Flouride varnish is a topical fluoride that is painted on the teeth to help stop cavities that have already started and prevent new cavities from forming. Small amounts of fluoride are applied and the varnish sets immediately upon contact with saliva. The flavored compound is well tolerated by infants and toddlers and can result in 25 to 45 percent reduction in tooth decay with regular application.
The fluoride varnish application process takes about one to three minutes, depending on the child’s age and ability to cooperate.
A lot of young parents aren’t aware that tooth decay in young children is five times more common than asthma, Calabro adds, and in fact, this decay is the most common chronic childhood disease.
"Cavities in baby teeth can be very painful and can affect children’s ability to eat, speak, sleep and learn properly," she says.
Calabro says that she and Marcia Schulz, faculty member in community health nursing, are pursuing future funding to support the dental outreach program services. The funding would allow for the purchase of toothbrushes, toothpaste and various educational aides, including books and handouts to distribute to young children and families.
She says that, in 2009, the program hopes to provide further fluoride treatments in a few places in Portage and Stark counties. She adds that the fluoride treatments are more effective if children receive them again every six months.
For more information about the program, contact Calabro at 330-672-8780 or mcalabro@kent.edu <mailto:mcalabro@kent.edu> .
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Media contact: Rachel Wenger-Pelosi, 330-672-8046 or rwenger@kent.edu
This fall, 21 children at the Ravenna Head Start received free dental exams and fluoride varnish treatments, which help to prevent cavities from forming. The exams and varnish were offered through services led by Mary Calabro, director of the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program at Kent State; Nora McGonagle, a health coordinator at Portage Learning Center; and Dr. Kris Drummond of the Akron Community Resource Center.
Smiles for Ohio, a fluoride varnish program funded by the Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services, supports the notion that primary care providers in Ohio should promote oral health while working with children.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, statistics show that, in 2003, only three percent of Ohio Medicaid-eligible children less than three years of age received any dental services through Medicaid. However, 78 percent received medical services.
Since primary care providers are more than likely to see these children, they have a unique opportunity to provide fluoride varnish before early caries, or tooth decay, form, says Calabro.
Calabro and 10 Kent State pediatric and family nurse practitioner students received training from the Ohio Department of Health to administer the fluoride varnish to the children. Sandy Brado, a dental hygienist from the Ohio Department of Health, Oral Health Division, trained the students and provided all of the varnish and necessary supplies for the application process.
Flouride varnish is a topical fluoride that is painted on the teeth to help stop cavities that have already started and prevent new cavities from forming. Small amounts of fluoride are applied and the varnish sets immediately upon contact with saliva. The flavored compound is well tolerated by infants and toddlers and can result in 25 to 45 percent reduction in tooth decay with regular application.
The fluoride varnish application process takes about one to three minutes, depending on the child’s age and ability to cooperate.
A lot of young parents aren’t aware that tooth decay in young children is five times more common than asthma, Calabro adds, and in fact, this decay is the most common chronic childhood disease.
"Cavities in baby teeth can be very painful and can affect children’s ability to eat, speak, sleep and learn properly," she says.
Calabro says that she and Marcia Schulz, faculty member in community health nursing, are pursuing future funding to support the dental outreach program services. The funding would allow for the purchase of toothbrushes, toothpaste and various educational aides, including books and handouts to distribute to young children and families.
She says that, in 2009, the program hopes to provide further fluoride treatments in a few places in Portage and Stark counties. She adds that the fluoride treatments are more effective if children receive them again every six months.
For more information about the program, contact Calabro at 330-672-8780 or mcalabro@kent.edu <mailto:mcalabro@kent.edu> .
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Media contact: Rachel Wenger-Pelosi, 330-672-8046 or rwenger@kent.edu