Build relationships with your clients and their children by promoting National Children’s Dental Health Month this February. Family dental care encourages educating not only the parents but the children to develop life-long dental hygiene practices. This month is a great time to begin educating those children with five tips you can implement today.
1. Distribute toothbrushes to local nonprofits
Meet the needs of high-risk children by dropping toothbrushes and toothpaste and floss kits off at homeless shelters and foster care organizations. The local food banks would be delighted to receive dental supplies, especially when their budgets have been reduced.
2. Provide fun activity sheets for children
You can provide activity sheets and brushing calendars with a little bit of photocopying. The ADA website has various calendars, activity sheets promoting drinking water, and even tooth fairy door signs for your patients. Other free websites are Get Coloring Pages and SugarBugDoug. Send them home with the children or have some in the waiting room along with boxes of colors to celebrate National Children’s Dental Health Month.
3. Add children’s dental books to your office
Children love to imagine themselves in books. Place new books around the office so children can read while waiting for their appointment to begin. Titles like Daniel Goes to the Dentist, Bear’s Loose Tooth, and The Tooth Book: A Guide to Healthy Teeth and Gums are examples you can buy from your local bookstore.
4. Add fun dental online videos to your office
The ADA website has a link to Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me. This bilingual (English/Spanish) resource uses Sesame Street characters to promote brushing and eating healthy, and it has certificates for teeth. You could play a video while the child is in the chair if you have the capabilities. Daniel Tiger gets his teeth cleaned in this short video. When a patient gets a filling, try Fillings for Children.
5. Promote National Children’s Dental Health Month in schools
Local schools are the best place to begin dental education programs for children. Reach out to elementary, middle, and high schools in your district to promote National Children’s Dental Health Month. You can print and take along free posters promoting drinking water, small dental kits, games or a quick maze. Upper elementary students may like the challenge of a crossword puzzle. Find more free activities here.
Middle and high school students will need something more advanced. You could share information on damage done to teeth by vaping, drugs, or smoking. A starting point for research on oral health damage caused by vaping is Living Under a Cloud from JADA. Don’t forget students are visual learners, so displaying some diseased and damaged teeth may get their attention.
Whatever steps you take to promote National Children’s Dental Health Month, know that you are encouraging dental hygiene practices that will keep children happy and smiling for years to come.
