Ron Brent elementary students all smiles at CNC dental clinics
The College of New Caledonia's dental students will help more Prince George elementary students show off their pearly whites this month.
The 12th annual Seal in a Smile program runs May 1 to 29 and features five weeks of free CNC dental clinics for approximately 175 Ron Brent elementary students, providing cleanings, fluorides and sealants.
Tuesdays and Thursdays, kindergarten to Grade 7 students are bused to the Prince George campus, where they will have their teeth cleaned and some may need to return if they need sealants.
“It’s an opportunity for our dental assisting and dental hygiene students to see some children in those age groups,” said CNC clinic co-ordinator Heather Brown. “It’s a really fun time for them and they’ll work at a different pace with these age groups.”
The CNC students will place sealants, deliver oral health education, polish the children’s teeth, and place fluoride.
“These children will benefit from having these treatments done,” said Brown. “Our sponsors have been very good to us to, providing donations of sundries and supplies. Without them, this wouldn’t happen.”
Those sponsors include 3M Canada, Sunstar Butler, Oral B Laboratories, Patterson Dental, Sinclair Dental, Pulpdent and Henry Schein Ash Arcona.
Northern Health chooses a different school each year based on need and proximity to the college. Once selected, the dental students visit the school in March, offering dental health workshops and preparing the elementary students for what will happen when they visit the CNC clinic for their preventative services.
“For us, it’s an opportunity to provide a prevention program,” said Northern Health’s certified dental assistant Kim Meise. “It’s a great partnership and there’s nothing like it offered anywhere else in B.C. It is also important that the students still see their regular dentist.”