Newswise — The University of Maryland Dental School has received a 2008 Business Recognition Award for its leadership in developing the Charm City Give Kids A Smile Day, a program to promote the oral health of inner-city children.
Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon presented the award to Jillian Easton, BDS MS, assistant professor of pediatric dentistry, on behalf of the Dental School. Give Kids A Smile stems from a partnership among the Dental School, the Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore, and the Maryland State Dental Association.
Earlier this month, more than 400 members of the Greater Baltimore Committee (GBC) attended the annual Business Recognition awards ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore. The Dental School was among nine award-winners from the Baltimore area.
GBC President Donald Fry said the award, established 35 years ago, "is presented annually to those companies that have demonstrated outstanding community service and, through their contributions, have significantly improved our city."
Give Kids a Smile Day was held on Feb. 8, 2008. The Maryland State Dental Association paid for buses to bring 120 third-grade students from George Washington elementary School and St. Jerome's Head Start Center to the dental museum, where dentists from the School and the surrounding area provided them with free dental screenings, preventive fluoride treatment, and oral health education.
Dental School students from UMB greeted the young visitors then performed a skit on oral hygiene, which energized the children and encouraged them to learn and enjoy their visit. The third graders visited several information stations set up for them to play educational games promoting healthy eating, exercise, and good oral hygiene.
Each of the students was then given a report that included an oral health diagnosis and recommendations for further treatment. They also received Give Kids A Smile packages courtesy of the American Dental Association, which included a dental education book, toothbrush, and dental floss.
The day's program was designed to encourage the children to share information provided with other children in their communities. Once the children have been brought into the clinics to receive care, they are more likely to continue treatment than if they had not received the referral, according to the organizers.
Easton said the National Museum of Dentistry was the "perfect setting" for such a health initiative, because the museum's child-centered oral health education program, MouthPower, plays a critical part in relaying the importance of oral health. Easton added that third-graders are old enough to comprehend and appreciate the lessons taught throughout the day and young enough to be receptive to lifestyle choices. Although the number of students as direct participants of the program is limited, the message spreads, and the news of the event encourages others to participate and join the effort to promote oral health, said Easton.
Charm City Give Kids A Smile Day supports the oral health goals of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Healthy People 2010, which recommends finding ways to reduce the proportion of children with untreated dental decay, preventing oral and craniofacial diseases, and improving access to related services.
In addition to Easton, the faculty advisors for the initiative included the chief dental officer for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Harry Goodman, DMD, and the chair of the Department of Health Promotion and Policy at the Dental School, Norman Tinanoff, DDS, MS.
The second annual Charm City Give Kids A Smile Day has been scheduled for February 6, 2009.
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