The newest mobile dental van has been unveiled, set to bring accessible dental care to more primary schools.
The Teeth on Wheels founding director, and dental practitioner, Joseph Zeid said the service now reaches about 200 schools.
“We service about 25,000 kids a year,” he said.
Joseph said the experience is positive for students, who get their dental check-ups in the van at school, which has space for them to bring friends along, and a TV to watch cartoons.
“The other kids watching creates a fun environment,” he said.
Joseph said he started Teeth on Wheels with his brother, Rami, 10 years ago, to help remove the stigma associated with the dentist.
“We both grew up having a negative outlook of the dentist… because of the language [our mum] used,” he said.
“She used keywords like… ‘don’t be scared, we’re going to be okay, be brave’,” he said.
Rami said parent’s body language has a big influence.
“They touch [the child’s] hand right before the practitioner picks up the drill… then they know something bad is going to happen,” Rami said.
“The biggest benefit [of the mobile van] is accessibility to dental care and changing that negative stigma,” he said.
Joseph said it was really exciting to get students to help with naming the new van.
“We ran this competition… and had quite a bit of uptake… [with] a lot of people responding on social media,” he said.
The new van is named Jasmine, after the Disney princess, but also because it uses the first letter of Joseph’s name, following a long naming tradition.
“The first letter of each of our clinics is from a family member… the first six we have named relate to our parents and grandparents.”
Joseph said the service does as much as it can to help parents who can’t find time to take their children to the dentist.
“Our vans are set up so that we have the licenses to do X-rays and some fillings and extractions… which prevents bigger treatments.”
Rami said parents are relieved that it is all set up with a signature, and that the free dental services are provided at school.
The president of the Victorian Principles Association, Andrew Dalgleish, said he is proud to have supported Teeth on Wheels for nine years.
“[Teeth on Wheels is] a triple win, for the child, the school and the parents… researchers say this is the way it should be done,” he said.
The Victorian Principles Association also assists Teeth on Wheels to develop educational material for schools on dental hygiene and healthcare.
“The work around the curriculum and aligning it with the Victorian curriculum is really exciting,” Mr Dalgleish said.
“From a school perspective, reducing the administration is huge, they sort it and organise it all,” he said.
Mr Dalgleish said the school only has to facilitate where the van goes and when each class of students get their checkups.
