Throughout the last few months I have participated in several public health community projects.

This is a photo of me screening a child at Ronal Edmunds learning center.

The first community Public Health Program I participated in was called “Give kids a Smile” organized by Dr. Bilello, a pediatric dentist. It was located at Ronald Edmund’s Learning Center. I provided limited screenings to children with consent forms that were filled out by their parents. I screened using a tongue depressor and flash light illumination. I documented any important information that I wanted the parent to be aware of and a copy of that information was given to the child to bring home. I also applied fluoride varnish to each child that was screened. For the children who did not have consent forms, the screeners, including myself,  formed groups to educate the children on each aspect of oral health. This included nutrition, flossing, brushing, how often they should have routine dental visits etc. 

Family Head Start

The second Public Health Program I participated in was Family Head Start. My Public Health Class and I went to a child and day care center to educate children about how to properly brush, floss, rinse, and choose the best foods that are healthy for their body and teeth. I was able to add to this event by demonstrating proper brushing on a stuffed animal with human-like teeth. (shown below)

These photos are of my group and I educating the children in the classroom. In the second photo we are holding toothbrushes and toothpaste that we gave out to the children after our presentation.

The third Public Health Program I participated in was actually one created by my group for Public Health Class. We were given an assignment to go to any Public Health Center and educate our selected population on oral health. My group chose to go to an elementary school. We got the chance to put together a powerpoint presentation that showed the importance of personal hygiene. We put together an interactive poster board. The students had to place the steps of hand washing in the correct order onto the board. We also brought a typodont for the kids to practice proper brushing.

Here is a photo of my professor who helped organize our participation in the screening and the selected students that helped the screeners document.

The fourth Public Health Program I participated in was at the Greater New York Dental Meeting. Myself and a few other students were selected to go into the Colgate van and document information the dentists and dental hygienists obtained while screening the children who attended. I documented whether or not the child had visible decay, their amount of plaque accumulation, and the severity of their need for routine or restorative dental care and orthodontic treatment.