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“I have learned from people with experience of homelessness, people working in the NHS boards and people in prison”


vulnerable group – the homeless. The young person’s project, run by her colleague at the University of Dundee’s Dental School, Dr Andrea Rodriguez, ultimately aims to help young homeless people (or those at risk of experiencing homelessness) feel more included within society, but it begins with oral health education. Ruth was inspired to take action after


encountering homeless people and rough sleepers while working in London. She says: “I did clinical work in King’s Cross and when I walked around in the morning some young people who were sleeping rough would come up to me. They wanted money, but instead I would take them for a coffee and a bap – I still do that around Dundee. I remember meeting a couple on the Tube, and they looked so impoverished, my heart went out to them. I think it stemmed from that.” Now, there are oral health advocates across


Scotland who work with homeless people in hostels and help them make dental appointments, often accompanying them to practices “because they feel so frightened and because of the stigma attached.” It is this team effort that Ruth believes is crucial. She says: “It’s multi-disciplinary and multi-sectorial working – it’s collaboration that works. “I have learned from people – be it people


with experience of homelessness, people working in the NHS boards and people in prison. They have helped us co-design and co-produce our interventions. “We have used oral health to try and reduce


social exclusion and inequalities and work with people. That has been a wonderful experience for me.”


Kristin Ballantyne is a freelance writer based in Glasgow


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