A couple of weeks ago, our school hosted the annual Give Kids a Smile event. This is a day when children who do not, have not, or can not see a dentist or a hygienist on a regular basis, get to have their teeth cleaned and examined by the aforementioned professionals for free. Dentists, Hygienists, and Assistants volunteer their time, supplies and love to help children in need. As students we accompanied the kids to the various stations, managed the various supplies, organized the various Dental professionals, and generally acted as gophers for all involved. It was complete and utter organized chaos.
It was one of the most emotional days I've had in a long time. Good and bad. We saw 150 kids in the span of 6 hours. Most of these kids had to have at least one tooth extracted. Most of these kids have never seen a dentist before, and most of these kids had to have cavities filled in more than one tooth. We had two cases of children with full heads of lice (I'm talking JUMPING FROM THEIR HAIR cases of lice). We had kids who upon seeing the dental chair and the ladies wearing masks freak out so badly they had to be held down in order to just calm them down. We had kids who after getting the tooth that was causing them extreme pain, thank the dentist who took it out. We had one child, (one of the ones who freaked out) show off his fillings and extraction sites proudly with a smile because he calmed down long enough to get his teeth fixed.
I cried silently most of the day and thanked god my goggles and mask could hide my emotions. I still tear up thinking about how many children go without seeing a dentist routinely let alone when they truly need one. I also get angry. Angry at parents who neglect their children to the extent that their head lice goes unchecked(!?!!) to the point that there are actual bugs crawling in their hair. I get angry at the parents who don't educate themselves on feeding their children healthy foods and then fail to teach them good oral health skills. But aside from the anger and the sadness I feel, I'm thankful that there are truly good and honest dental professionals out there who come in to an organized day of chaos and just help.
It wasn't just a day of service....it was truly a day of learning. I learned so much from watching, so much from helping and so much from just being there. I look forward to next year's event, and the following years event, when as a Registered Dental Hygienist, I will return to my alma mater to donate my services and help.
3 comments:
Awesome Kim!!!
I know about what you mean about getting angry and these loser parents. I see the same type of kids at Noah's school when I'm volunteering and it just breaks my heart.
This all makes me wonder about our "health care system". Dental care is just as important as any other health care.
Keep doin'what you're doing!
Aunt Kathy, unfortunately our health care system is set up for after the fact care versus preventative care. Dental Health is vitally important especially in children. I would love to see all children get low cost or free dental cleanings and sealants at least until they graduate High School. Dental Hygienists are working to get mid level practitioner status, much like a Nurse Practitioner, and have successfully gotten them in certain states. But we don't have good reciprocity across state borders and Dentists have fought against this in many cases because we would be taking "business" away from them. A Dental Hygiene Practitioner would have a MS and do cleanings, sealants, and in many uncomplicated cases, fill cavities. I'm hoping to see this happen in my career life, but we'll have to wait and see.
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