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About Siletz news / (Siletz, OR) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2006)
Siletz , Community <--------------------------------------------------------- , | Commit to Quit Challenge 1 A Program to Encourage Smokers and Chewers to Quit! Weekly and Grand Prize Drawings The Commit to Quit Challenge is a 12-week program to encourage smokers and chewers to quit. Weekly drawings will be held, with a grand prize drawing Sept. 6, 2006, during the Run to the Rogue .sign-up at the Tribal Community Cen ter in Siletz, Ore. Dates: June 1 - Aug. 31 Grand Prize Drawing: Sept. 6 Contact: DeAnna Pearl, 541-444-9659 or 1-800-648-0449, ext. 1659 • • • In American Indians, asthma is growing fast. American Indians have the high est rate of smokers. Secondhand smoke is the No. 1 trigger for asthma. <_________________________________ • The No. 1 prevention of asthma । is smoke-free homes. Protect Our Children Honor and Mentor Them Commit to Quit __________________________________________ ) Annual Sealant Clinic, 2006 by Mary Ellen Volansky, RDH, MS Forty-one children came to the Siletz Dental Clinic on May 9, where each child was screened by one of our den tists to determine which teeth would benefit from sealants. Dental assistants then placed sealant on 1 10 teeth. This was all done in five hours! The kids were patient and help ful. There were laughs, prizes and a movie. This wouldn’t have happened with out the combined efforts of many pro fessionals in our community. We be gan organizing this project back in February wi Lourdes Jackson at Siletz Valley School. Actually, she taught me a bunch about scheduling stu dents for anything. I was most amazed when I learned what Lourdes had to ac complish at SVS for this clinic to happen. Send ing and collect ing parental consent forms are the easy steps. The next step she must more daunting match up each child's class- room/lunch/reading/physical education schedule with the five one-hour clinic openings. At each opening, we are able to see 10 students. Lourdes, thank you for providing your scheduling expertise! One student told our staff she wanted to be a dentist. She observed with a dental assistant to see what is involved in dental practice. Robin said she was a good helper. We hope this student Clinic Health CHA-MAY WEEYA-MEDICINE TALK -T- will return to our dental clinic when she completes her college education. The children received a slip of pa per telling their parents or guardians which teeth were sealed. These are all teeth without decay. When visible de cay was present, parents received in structions to take their child to a den tist. This will be easiest for children of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indi ans, for they can come back here. As I said earlier, many profession als contributed to the success of this clinic: Judy Muschamp; Wendi Schamp; Krisiti Martin-Bayya; Elton Hostler - bus driver; Drs. Randall Teich and Matthew Winkle; den tal assistants Bonnie McAlpine, Robin Duarte, Alison and Noble, Diane Tripp; Diane and Rodriquez, edi tor of this news paper. for this ar ticle. She would have taken pictures had I more organized - seed for next year! I had the best job of all - working with all of you. Out of a possible I 17 students in grades 1-6, only 46 parents signed con sent forms to allow their children to participate in this annual clinic. Of those students, four were absent. If your friends don't know about this clinic, tell them about it for next year. If you have ideas about how we can improve next year's Sealant Clinic, write to me at SiletzOralHealth@yahoo.com. Till next year, thank you! Tooth Talk by Mary Ellen Volansky, RDH, MS Regular Dental Visits are Part of Growing Up and Growing Old: Your Child’s First Dental Visit Are you afraid of going to the den tist? Concerned you'll pass your fear along to your children? Well, just don’t! Don’t let your child know you’re scared. Pretend that go ing to the dentist is just like going to grandma’s. You don’t warn them about Grandma, do you? Don't use dentist visits as punish ment, even if it does reign in those er rant behaviors. Such use of this pre ventive dental health care sets up the perception of dental treatment that we, and hopefully you, don't want build ing inside your child’s head. Also, don’t let anyone else tell your child that going to the dentist is a horror story out of yet another movie version of Friday, the I 3,h. Just spend time monitoring what other people tell your child, intercept the “disinformation,” and replace it with the truth. What is the truth? At least, what is the truth about visiting a dental office for the first time? When you bring your child in for the first time at age 6 months, it won’t hurt. Yes, I said 6 months of age. Their teeth are so new that decay is highly unlikely, so no injections or drilling. Phew, one fear down. What will we do at that first visit? We will place your child in your lap fac ing you, then you will lower your child's head back onto our knees. We will kx>k at your child’s teeth and check for posi tioning of teeth, discolorations, and plaque. We will place fluoride, a cherry- favored film with a reasonably pleasant favor. This type of examination for tod dlers is called a “knee-to-knee” exam. Now, about that little itty-bitty fear you might have. It will not be easy to hide, mostly because of all the things you may say, like “It won’t hurt" or “There is nothing to be scared of.” When was the last time you said any of those things about going to Disneyland? You also might let your children know what you feel by what you don't say, such as, “You'll like Dr. Hacker.” Well, I never thought to not like Dr. Hacker or dentists in general. Or, “Go ing to Dr. Payne's doesn't hurt. My next thought would be. “Pain ? In my mouth?" So telling kids you're taking them to the park, beach, or Disneyland will roll sweetly off your tongue. Even tell ing your children you're taking them to school or grandpa’s will slide off easily. How about the physician's of fice? This might stick some, yet kids go to the doctor from birth. When you start your conversation with your child at 6 months, it will be short and simple, such as, “The dentist will gently lift your lip and count your teeth.” If there are no questions, stop here. Or you could talk about us using a toothbrush to clean your child's teeth. You could stop here, or add that we will use a small paintbrush to apply a cherry-tasting medicine. You might add that we will answer all your and your child’s questions. Done. Research supports the idea that the more someone comes to a dental of fice, the less anxious they are about coming the next time. Once the needed (or dreaded) treatment is done, the un knowns becomes familiar. Once you brush/floss/toothpaste daily and have regular checkups, the likelihood of needing future treatment diminishes. If your child starts coming in as a 6-month-old, he/she sees that going to the dental clinic is safe, easy, and maybe even fun. We’ll have a prize for each child and a sack of home-care supplies appropriate to the child's age. We take pictures of each child who is cavity-free that are posted outside the dental clinic for friends and family to see. So your child is going to the den tist and you know there is decay (a complaint of a toothache, a doctor told you). What do you tell your child? The truth, in terms they understand. Tell your child the day of the visit that they are going to the dentist. Tell them the tooth that hurts will not hurt when the work is done. The soft spot causing the pain will be replaced with hard materials for chewing. Answer the questions they ask. We will explain more when they are in the chair and will tell them ev erything we arc doing before we do it. We will be gentle and caring. What if they ask about a shot? If you know for sure they are going to have an injection, say yes. Is it painful? Yes. You might say it's like an immu nization only less painful because once the medicine enters the cheek, it numbs or put the tooth to sleep immediately. We don't want your child or any one to have a scary experience with us. Scared people don't come back - not at least until the pain is huge again. Waiting until pain is huge confirms that going to the dentist continues to be scary. Catching treatment needs when they are small or preventing the need for treatment is the long-term an swer to fear of the dental office. So please tell us you are scared and ask us what we can do to ease your concerns. In other words, answer your child's questions. Answer them simply and in terms they are familiar with. Remember, when kids come in at age 6 months they will learn about prevention and com fortable dentistry, and gain a solid start on oral health habits for a healthy life. Check out the Siletz Dental Clinic's Web page, with links to fun Web sites. Questions or comments? Write to me at SiletzOralHealth@yahoo.com. June 2006 • Siletz News • 19
