[Report 1935] / School Medical Officer of Health, West Sussex County Council.

  • West Sussex (England). County Council.
Date:
1935
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1935] / School Medical Officer of Health, West Sussex County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    31/36 (page 31)
    REPORT OF THE SENIOR SCHOOL DENTIST. In connection with the School Dental Service, the two out¬ standing incidents of the year 1935 are the appointment of an additional dentist to the dental staff and the introduction of the dental caravan. The addition of one full-time Dental Surgeon will now make possible one of the ideals of school dentistry, namely, that the interval between inspections should not be more than twelve months. All age-groups from 5-14 are inspected and treated, and the children of the remote villages share equally with those in the towns in the allotment of the operating time of the Staff. The difficulty of obtaining suitable premises in the villages for use as temporary clinics has been met by the new motor- drawn dental caravan. By its use the dentists are able to do their work in an up-to-date surgery, and the children in rural districts are now under no disadvantage with regard to modern convenience Everywhere the caravan has been received with enthusiasm, and its propaganda value has been made apparent by the increased number of consents to treatment where it has been used. This caravan, which is, I believe, the first of its kind in this country, has aroused considerable notice in the dental profession, and numerous enquiries have been made about it, one from as far away as New Zealand. The clerical organisation of the dental scheme is such that every precaution is taken to ensure that no child misses the opportunity of treatment. Special forms are sent to parents of absentees from inspections and all consent forms are checked back against the list of children found in need of treatment. All “refusals” are visited by the School Nurses, and it is to the credit of the latter that many of these refusals are turned into consents. Every effort is being made to demonstrate to parents that the School Clinic represents a high standard in child dentistry. The greatest care is taken to remove the element of pain as far as is possible. By this means the old dread of the dentist is gradually disappearing among children. It is quite an uncommon thing now for children to want their parents to come to the clinic with them. Orthodontic treatment is being done to a limited extent, and the benefit derived from the correction of irregularities of the teeth is greatly appreciated by parents of patients. Conservative treatment is urged whenever it is possible, but there arc still many parents who regard extraction of the offending tooth as the only method of treatment. Aesthetic appearance is considered when fillings have to be done and the use of metal is avoided in places where it would show.