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Last July 8, 2017, our dental team visited our community center in Barangay Silangan, Quezon City to conduct a dental mission for our beneficiaries. The dental team consisted of dentists Dr. Beatrice Ruiz, Dr. Daryl Eustaquio, and dental assistant Ms. Floriza Fundar.
One of the dental team’s goals was to raise awareness about the importance of dental hygiene. The dental mission had two phases. The first was to give an oral and dental check-up to the beneficiaries and their parents to check the condition of their teeth.
According to Dr. Beatrice, out of the 30 children that were accommodated (with ages varying from eight to twenty years old), the dental team found 28 teeth that need to be extracted, 166 cavities to treat, and 16 root canal treatments to save the remaining teeth of children. From the eight community leaders and mothers that were checked, the dentists found that most of them also need prosthesis to replace missing teeth.
The second phase was to give a lecture regarding oral diseases and hygiene. In the lecture, Dr. Daryl discussed the different dental diseases that can be contracted and other health problems it can lead to. She also taught proper oral hygiene practices they could do at home in order to better protect their teeth.
Dr. Daryl says that dental hygiene is often overlooked when it comes to discussing our health. “Sadly, dental visits are usually forgotten because of fear of the cost of treatment, pain from any procedure or simply the lack of awareness of their dental disease, most common of which is dental caries [tooth decay]…By showing parents and children some of my cases they discovered that there are many ways to treat dental caries both preventatively and therapeutically.”
Dr. Beatrice mentions that both children and parents were receptive during the lecture:
“…The majority of the children were not scared of us. This is very good…Also I found all the beneficiaries and also the parents very productive during the lecture of Dr. Eustaquio. They were all very interested about what she was saying.”
By talking about different diseases and the common oral hygiene mistakes that people make, both parents and children were made aware of the importance of good oral hygiene habits to prevent further pain and sickness in the future, as well as its positive contribution to our health.
By also conducting the check-up, the dental team was able to assess the condition of each patient so that further treatment can be performed at the Virlanie clinic. Through the dental mission, we hope to help the beneficiaries and their families have healthier smiles–as well as the proper knowledge to maintain them.