Dental service for children and adolescents under residential care services

Abstract

Background and Objectives: There are around 4000 children and adolescents in Hong Kong under subsidized residential care services provided by various non-governmental organizations (NGO). The main aims of this project were to provide essential preventive and restorative dental care services to this special group, and to provide oral health education to these children and their caretakers in the NGO residential care facilities. Methods: The project participants were children aged 3 to 18 years under the residential care services of the two largest NGOs in Hong Kong, namely Po Leung Kuk (PLK) and Tung Wah Group of Hospitals (TWGH). Written consent was obtained from their parent/guardians. The project activities included interviewing the participants, provision of oral health education to the participants and their caretakers, and dental care services for the participants in the facilities of the NGOs. Results: A total of 100 children from the two NGOs participated in this project. Over 90% of them brushed their teeth twice daily or more. Most of the children who lived in PLK snacked at least two times daily and this was more frequent than those who lived in TWGH facilities. One third of the preschool children and more than half of the teenager had dental caries experience. Over 90% of the adolescents had bleeding gums and more than half of them had dental calculus. Fluoride varnish was applied onto a total of 483 teeth, mostly primary teeth in the preschool children. Forty participants received a total of 94 dental sealants, and 24 ART restorations were placed in 17 participants. From the feedback obtained, this project was well received by the participants and the staff from the two NGOs. Conclusion and Recommendations: In this project, preventive and restorative dental care was successfully provided to the children and adolescents under residential care, and oral health education was delivered to these children and their caretakers. It is recommended that the NGOs should try to arrange and provide regular dental care service to the children under their residential care. There should be a reduction in snacking frequency of these children and the snacks offered by the NGO should be low in sugar. Government should subsidize the NGOs for arranging regular dental care services for the institutionalized children. Dentists are encouraged to volunteer their time to help this specific group of children and to focus on providing preventive care and oral health education.