One of my favorite project during my time as a dental hygienist student was the Head Start Educational Varnish program. This program was designed to promote and increase oral health awareness, education, and access to preventive services to underprivileged children and their family.
I visited a school in a low-income community on three occasions in order to conduct a 30-minute dental health education and provide basic oral health screenings/preventative services to the children. My roles in the Head Start Educational Varnish program were examiner, recorder and floor manager.
Examiner – I provided basic oral screening with a small flashlight and tongue depressor. I then proceeded to apply 5% NaF varnish to each individual.
Recorder – I recorded on a report card all relevant information that were obtained during the basic oral screening. This included the overall oral health condition for each child and provided referrals when necessary.
Floor Manager – I brought the children to the examination area and collected all the necessary paper work.
The Head Start Educational Varnish program was a success. The main reason why I loved this program was because it allowed the underprivileged children a point-of-entry into the oral health; something that they would have otherwise been deprived of due to the community they are from and their parents’ financial situation.
