Page 18 - ICD Newsletter November 2021 Final Draft_Neat

Perth, Perth City East and Heirrison for their ongoing throughout the country were able to receive refresher
support and the young Rotaracts for packing our training via Zoom on the placement of silver diamine
toothbrushes into classroom ready packs. fluoride (SDF). Healthy Kids team members were also
on hand via Zoom during the clinical activity when
KDT teams continue to engage with remote questions arose.
communities, providing invaluable dental services in
a friendly and happy team environment. Volunteers
express the pleasure they feel in seeing the difference
made by the education program and being able
to relieve chronic pain for people who have been
suffering. We cover thousands of kilometres in a
region twice the size of Victoria and three times the
size of the United Kingdom.

We always say, we can never thank enough our
fabulous volunteers, sponsors and supporters
without whom these results could not be achieved. This training was particularly important for the six
schools where children with special needs reside.
John and Jan Owen, Before tele-dentistry was initiated for these schools,
john.owen@owenorthodontics.com.au
the children had not received any dental care for over
Editor’s note: John and Jan Owen have inspired 18 months. The Zoom training enabled the nurses at
many oral health professionals to join the Kimberley the schools to apply SDF. Children with more severe
Dental Team. The 2021 KDT team included Dr Ashlee needs were referred to a local provider.
Bence, DA Karen Bowman, Dr Tim Clair, DA Mekalla
Cunningham (SDI representative), DA Sandra Elliot, Dr
Cletus Fimmel, final year dental student Alice Gregory,
Dr Andrew Heap, Dr Rod Jennings, Dr Naomi Kottege,
Dr Moses Lee, Dr Mark Nathan, final year dental
student Brigette O’Brien, Dr Ashleigh Owen, David
Owen, Dr Jilen Patel, DA Ranae Russo, DA Giorgia
Sabbatino, Tracy Sandercock, DA Louise Sertorio, Dr
Simon Shanahan, final year dental student Xin Jie
Tan, final year dental student Richard Tien, DA Ruth
Warden and Sue Worsley. Unfortunately, Dr Clare Lin
(Victoria) and Dr Sue Cartwright (NSW) could not join The use of tele-dentistry as a mobile technology
the 2021 team due to Covid. has received recent attention in global oral health
and we hope to continue to use this technology to

HEALTHY KIDS CAMBODIA increase the frequency of our refresher training and
to maintain our relationships with our partners all
AND THE NEW NORMAL over the country.

Bethy Turton, bethy.turton@gmail.com
In recent months, the Healthy Kids Cambodia team
has become adept at stopping, starting and reframing
and adjusting their plans. While there have been PNG UPDATE 2021
some periods of free movement where we have
been able to deliver care, there have been other COVID-19’s Delta strain is overwhelming Papua New
times where planned activities had to be cancelled Guinea’s fragile health system, forcing the closure of
at the last minute. In Cambodia, schools are opening Port Moresby’s only public hospital to non-critical
from November 21 so we feel hopeful that schools care and sparking emergency oxygen deliveries to
will be in full swing come 2022. In the meantime, we the remote highlands. Vaccine hesitancy is rampant,
have developed skills in tele-dentistry whereby our driven by social media disinformation. Though most
primary healthcare providers scattered in schools dentists and dental therapists have been vaccinated,

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