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SEPTEMBER 2009
(Vol. 4, Issue 3)
IMPORTANT DATES
September 16,
2009
Converging
Interests: Wisconsin Head Start Oral Health
Forum
Wisconsin Dells,
WI
September 25,
2009
Department
of Regulation and Licensing Information Session
Milwaukee,
WI
October 2-3, 2009
Wisconsin
Dental Hygiene Association Indigo
Conference
Wisconsin Dells, WI
November 4,
2009
Wisconsin
Dental Examining Board Meeting
Madison,
WI
November 7-11,
2009
American
Public Health Association
Annual Meeting
Philadelphia, PA
If you have
an event you would like added to this list please e-mail Matt
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WOHC MEMBER
SPOTLIGHT
Congratulations
to Sharon Daun of the Sheboygan Area
School District for receiving the
2009 Wisconsin School Nurse of the Year
award
Sharon
Daun, RN, BSN, MS recently received the Wisconsin
Association of School Nurses 2009 School Nurse of
the Year award at their annual meeting. Daun is one
of the coordinators of the Sheboygan Seal-A-Smile
(SAS) program.
Daun,
along with the Sheboygan County Public Health
Department, have grown a successful school-based dental
sealant and oral health prevention program in the
Sheboygan area school district. Initially, a small grant
to treat Hmong children at Washington School was
received in 2005. The program has since grown to
serve over 1,000 children with fluoride varnish
and assessments as well as almost 800 children with
dental sealants in 13 area elementary schools.
Daun has
been instrumental in helping the Sheboygan SAS
program become almost fully self-sustaining. The
program was a recipient of a 2009-10 SAS mini-grant from
Children's Health Alliance of Wisconsin. The WOHC
applauds Daun for her hard work and dedication towards
improving the oral health of children in
Wisconsin.
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WISCONSIN NEWS
Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile
review
The 2008-09 Seal-A-Smile (SAS)
program has completed its ninth successful year. More
than $190,000 was awarded to 20 programs statewide.
These programs held 184 different school-based and
school-linked dental sealant events throughout the year. This
year, programs screened 9,777 children and placed sealant on
6,266 children. In addition to sealant delivery, more
than 16,400 children received oral hygiene education either in
classroom presentations or chair side. Almost half (43.0
percent) the children screened were found to have untreated
decay with 5.6 percent having urgent dental
needs.
The
2009-10 grantees were also recently announced. For a list
of the grantees click
here.
Wisconsin 2008
Make Your Smile Count Survey
The Wisconsin Department of Health
Services recently released the results of the 2008 Make Your
Smile Count Survey of third-grade children. Using
the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors
basic screening survey, over 4,300 children statewide were
examined. The results show that prevention programs are
making progress, however there is still a significant dental
disease problem in Wisconsin. The findings also highlight
the oral health disparity that exists among children with
different socioeconomic backgrounds and
race. To download the two page summary click
here or contact Matt Crespin
to request a copy of the full report.
Head Start oral health
forum
The Association of State and
Territorial Dental Directors, Dental Dental of Wisconsin,
Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Wisconsin Head Start
Association and Wisconsin Department of Children and Families
are cosponsoring a forum to address the oral health of Head
Start children in Wisconsin. The Converging Interests
forum will take place on Wednesday, September 16 at the
Kalihari Resort in Wisconsin Dells. Presenters include
Dr. James J. Crall, director, American Academy of Pediatric
Dentists Head Start Dental Home Initiative and US National and
Olympic champion Suzy Favor Hamelton. Results of the 2008
Healthy Teeth for a Healthy Head Start Survey also will be
released. Don't miss this opportunity to network and explore
innovative approaches to addressing dental access for young
children. Click
here to download a conference brochure and registration
materials.
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NATIONAL NEWS
Health care reform and oral
health
The Children's Dental Health
Project (CDHP) has created a valuable health care reform
center on their Web site. Weekly updates and a side by side
analysis of the House bill and the oral health provisions
passed in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
bill are available. Learn
more about health care reform and oral health.
The American Association
of Public Health Dentists (AAPHD) have also put together an
issue brief on this subject. AAPHD is urging its members to
take an active role in the legislative process. Learn
more.
Ohio offers distance learning
curriculum on school-based dental sealant
programs
Modules that cover infection
control, tooth surface assessment and selection, materials and
techniques and operating effective programs are now available
online. The online modules were created by the Ohio
Department of Health. Free continuing education credits are
available for dentists and dental hygienists. Learn
more about these online modules.
The U.S. oral health workforce in the
coming decade
A report
detailing the current and future oral health workforce
shows a failure to meet the needs of many segments of the
U.S. population. The report published by the Institute of
Medicine is available for free. Click
here to download the entire report or an executive
summary.
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WOHC
NEWS
Steering committee face to face
meeting
The steering
committee of the Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition met face
to face in Stevens Point to discuss the current and future
plans of the coalition. Increasing funding to local
programs and holding regional coalition meetings were two
themes that emerged. The committee agreed that working with
local public health departments to increase block grant
funding for oral health programs is a
priority. Local health departments can use funding for
surveillance and fluoride varnish programs. The other
initiative that the committee agreed upon
was arranging meetings over the course of the next
year in various locations around the state rather than having
only one statewide meeting in November. Regional meetings
will focus on problems, resources and opportunities within the
region. Speakers from outside the region will also be invited
to share best practices with those in
attendance. Currently, WOHC staff is working with
representatives in the Eau Claire and Chippewa county area to
host the first meeting of several held around the state
in the coming year. If you are interested in hosting a
meeting, please contact Matt Crespin ,
oral health project manager at Children's Health Alliance of
Wisconsin.
Steering committee welcomes
new members
The Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition
steering committee has filled several vacancies recently. Dr.
Fredrick Eichmiller, DDS of Delta Dental of Wisconsin and
Melissa Duffy from the Council on Rural Initiatives have
agreed to serve on the steering committee. In addition,
Senator Julie Lassa (Stevens Point) attended our most recent
face to face meeting and her or her staff will
also participate on the steering committee. The WOHC
welcomes these new members and looks forward to their
contribution in the coming years.
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CHILDREN'S
HEALTH ALLIANCE OF WISCONSIN NEWS
kids unLEADed
Children's Health Alliance of
Wisconsin is working with many state and local partners to
eliminate childhood lead poisoning. To learn more,
subscribe to kids
unLEADed , an electronic newsletter sent three times per
year focusing on childhood lead poisoning prevention
activities.
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