Childsmile
is now saving money. David Conway said: “Not only is the toothbrushing programme improving health, there is also a big economic preventive spend associated with that. “So, yes it costs money – it
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I think we need to move more upstream now, which is doing more with regards to advocacy and influencing policy development at national and local levels.” Rather than focusing solely
on dental specific policy areas, Professor Macpherson said they have identified areas such as sugar policy and the work the Government has been doing on school meals as areas they could have an ongoing influence. But, as well as the upstream
elements, the community – or midstream – approach will always be fundamental to how Childsmile works and how it develops into the future. Professor Macpherson
explained that the plan is to improve engagement with local communities and involve them more in the decision- making process. “Rather than a top-down approach, with professionals saying ‘this is what you should be doing’, it should be more about understanding the environments in which people are living and helping to
support them with regards to environmental change. It shouldn’t just be education. If we can help them through community engagement and development, I think it will be more sustainable into the future,” she said. Another key element that
plays into the long-term planning of the Childsmile programme is that it is now actually showing economic benefits on a national scale. A cost analysis carried out by the University of Glasgow on the national nursery toothbrushing programme has shown that it
View from the front line
Following the news that there has been a dramatic improvement in the oral health of children since the launch of Childsmile, we contacted two dentists to ask what they think. Childsmile was launched almost a decade ago and the latest figures show that 68 per cent of primary 1 pupils have no obvious decay experience.
Gavin Balfour, from King Street Dental Practice in Aberdeen, said: “When it was first launched, it was quite confusing. It was over- complicated in the way it was broken down and there was a hurdle to get over in terms of training the staff and understanding it all. “However, it has worked
32 Scottish Dental magazine
and made a difference and it’s especially good that it’s been rolled out in nurseries and primary schools. It’s quick and easy to do and it has definitely raised awareness. Parents and children come in now and when I’m putting the Duraphat on, they recognise it from school.
“I still think the people who need it most are missing out – there’s a lack of awareness in disadvantaged families and there’s still an area of the community that it’s not reaching, perhaps even the ones we’re trying to target the most. It’s not a magic bullet. It has helped, but there is still work to do in providing the public with more knowledge. It’s a step in the right direction.”
Agnes Swinfen, from D.L. Swinfen Dental Practice in Blantyre, said: “I think Childsmile has been very successful. Previously, especially in this area, people left it until age five to bring their children to the dentist and quite often their first visit was because they were in pain.
“The attitude used to be that it was only the deciduous teeth, but because of Childsmile, parents are now more aware that it’s important to keep the deciduous teeth in place for the adult teeth to come in in the right position. “Childsmile has made such a difference in the more deprived areas, too. This is down to the nurses. Before Childsmile, if families failed
appointments, they wouldn’t get seen again, but now I can report that to the Childsmile co-ordinator and she’ll look into it. There are some people whose health visitors are still having to chase them up and if it wasn’t for the Childsmile programme, I think these children would be missed. “A lot of people think that Childsmile was a waste of money, but it’s not, because without the back-up of these people, the patients wouldn’t be coming into the practice with their children.”
costs just under £2 million a year, every year, to do the toothbrushing programme – but we have savings now of more than £4m per year. We have done a detailed analysis with health economic experts and we are due to publish that in a peer-reviewed journal.” However, Scotland’s Chief
Dental Officer Margie Taylor, while being very impressed with the economic benefits, insists the advantages to the children are more important. She said: “The economic
evaluation showed that we not only save money, we also save the children having to go through all the treatment that would otherwise have been required and along with that, the inconvenience, time off school and all that sort of thing, so there is a wider benefit than saving money – it is the benefit to the child.”
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