Head Start- Fluoride Varnish Program ( Spring 2018)
For this Head Start program, I had the opportunity to provide preventative care for children ages 3-5 from low-income families. It was my role to give an intra-oral screening and chart anything of significance such as decay, discoloration or early childhood caries and inform the parents of the current oral health status of their child. I then applied a fluoride varnish to each child, and gave them a written report to bring home to their guardian. This program was extremely rewarding and gave me the opportunity to work with children which I hope to do in the future!
Head Start- Dental Outreach Activity (Spring 2018)
For this Head Start program, I was presented with a chance to work with children between the ages of 3-5 years old from low-income families. We played a child-friendly animated video provided by Oral B. The video exemplified how to prevent cavities in a simple way that was easy for the children to understand. After watching the video, I first demonstrated how to properly brush on adorable stuffed animals with full dentition. They were then able to get hands on and show me what they learned. The children absolutely loved brushing the stuffed animals teeth and taking turns telling us how they brush their teeth at home! I loved helping them correct their techniques and was so happy to hear that many were brushing with the help of a guardian because their oral health is so important and their ability to brush was limited due to their ages.
Ronald Edmunds Learning Center (Spring 2018)
This program was one of the most eye-opening and heart-felt experiences I have encountered thus far in my dental hygiene career. Ronald Edmunds learning center is an elementary school with a great program for children who are on the spectrum on autism. I had the opportunity to complete screenings and placed fluoride varnish on these children. Many of the students I encountered were non-verbal and carried around tablets to verbalize. It was so rewarding to have closed off children open up to me and allow me to look in their mouths something that is a difficult task for many. The paras of multiple children were astonished to see that they were cooperating in the tasks. We then provided take home letters for their guardians to know their current oral health status and to address any issues. I received so many hugs that day and it is a program that I would love to take part in again!
Give Kids A Smile – Greater NY Dental Meeting at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center of New York (Winter 2017)
Volunteering at the Greater NY Dental Meeting for Give Kids A Smile, was such a fun and interactive experience. My team and I were in charge of the nutrition section, where we taught kids about which foods are good and bad for oral health with the use of poster boards. We used props such as healthy and unhealthy foods and allowed the children to raise their hands and tell us which board the food belonged on. We also put together a short song and dance to get the kids intrigued right from the start of our presentation.
