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Nooksack Students Get Dental Care: Visit Isn't As Intimidating With Friends

Posted on: Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 09:01 CST

By Mary Lane Gallagher, The Bellingham Herald, Bellingham, Wash.

Mar. 15--Fourteen Nooksack Valley School District students had a special school assignment Tuesday - dental work.

The youngsters filled the dentists' chairs at the Interfaith Community Health Center for the Day at the Dentist, a partnership with the Nooksack Valley School District.

The students were among 200 or so who earlier in the school year had visited Interfaith's mobile dental van when it stopped at their school. In addition to checkups and free toothbrushes, several kids had received recommendations to visit a dentist soon for fillings or other more serious dental work.

"We find kids that have serious dental problems, then encourage their parents to call and make an appointment," said Pat Anderson, the clinic's mobile dental program coordinator. "Not necessarily with us. It could be with anyone."

But for many families in the Nooksack district, a trip to the dentist is easier said than done. Some can't afford to take time off work, or don't have reliable transportation. And some just don't have a regular dentist.

"The dental van comes out and does a great service," said Becky Robertson, the district's family services coordinator. "It's hard to stop it there and say, 'Oh, your child has a cavity. Go deal with it.'"

Untreated cavities aren't just kids' problems, said Lynnette Ondeck, a school district nurse. Some kids have to be sent home sick because their teeth hurt, she said.

"We want kids to be able to perform well in class and not be worrying about a tooth that's bothering them," Ondeck said.

Interfaith serves families with private as well as government-funded insurance, and provides service on a sliding scale to those who don't have insurance.

Some of the Nooksack kids came to Interfaith with their parents. Others got a ride in a district van with Robertson or Ondeck, who accompanied kids to the appointments with their parents' permission. Ondeck hoped to have the kids back in school soon after lunch.

Six-year-old Sumas Elementary kindergartner Tirzah Cragle prepared to get her first filling Tuesday, said her father, Jonathan Cragle, who accompanied his daughter to the clinic. There are benefits to going to the dentist with classmates, he said.

"It doesn't seem as intimidating to go into the dentist when you know others who are going to be there," he said.

Salina Mikell, a 10-year-old fourth-grader at Sumas Elementary, sailed through her filling with no pain, she said. The dentist, a fourth-year dental student on a rotation from the University of Washington, and assistants were nice, she added.

Her advice for other kids with trips to the dentist in their future: "They don't have to be afraid, because they have laughing gas."

Reach Mary Lane Gallagher at 715-2285 or mary.gallagher@ bellinghamherald.com.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Bellingham Herald, Bellingham, Wash.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Bellingham Herald, Wash.

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