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33
Dental
Treatment
birth, or in the family history, such as the present "Observation Register"
sets out to cover.
It is suggested that the potential opportunities which would be
afforded by such a Dual Register be seriously considered.
(Ref: Kallen & Winberg,
Sweden Paediatrics
41 : 765-776, 1968)
The provision of dental services to expectant and nursing mothers
and to children under the age of 5 is reported on by Mr. E.V. Haigh,
Principal Dental Officer-
The treatment of expectant, nursing Mothers and children under 5
years of age continued to be available from any of the nine surgeries in
the Borough. However, most patients attended either Kenwood Dental or
Mayesbrook Dental Clinic. The treatment of very small children can
demand rather specialized ability of Dental Officers and staff. These
children need more patience and can be very time consuming. However,
by careful handling these children can be most rewarding and we hope
they will become regular patients and lose the old fears of visiting the
dentist. It is certain that one of the main ways to combat dental disease
in the future is to start now with the young children.
By showing their parents the importance of good dental habits and
regular dental treatment, these children will be conscious of the fact that
they are important to their health when they are older. Many of these
young children are dentally neglected and many parents still tend to
think that deciduous teeth are not important.
To further dental health education the dental auxiliary commenced
visiting Council Day Nurseries and Private Day Nurseries and Child
Minders. She also spent several sessions talking to mothers with young
children at Infant Centres. Tooth brushes continued to be sold in Dental
Clinics to assist in furthering dental health.
The demand for treatment by expectant and nursing mothers continued
to decrease. This is due to the fact that most mothers use the general
dental service. Most expectant and nursing mothers are more dentally
health conscious and as such are under private practitioners supervision
prior to the Ante-natal or Post-natal care and as such prefer to continue