In light of February being National Children’s Dental Health Month, the Administration for Children’s Services has partnered with NYU Dentistry to provide free dental screenings and dental education to children and families of the South Bronx. NYC children are out of school this week for Mid-Winter Recess so they will available during the day for the screenings.
The screening will take place on Friday, February 21, 2020, between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
The dental screenings will take place at “O.U.R. Place” in Hunts Point, the first of the three “Family Enrichment Centers” which opened in NYC in 2018.
These centers are led by local communities and nonprofit agencies with support from the Administration for Children’s Services. O.U.R. Place is managed by a non-profit called Graham Windham. At each of the centers, local parents and community members determine which services are offered, what the facilities will look like, what hours they’re open, and what type of staffing they have. Centers combine primary preventive services, which are designed to reach families proactively to avoid child welfare involvement, with community organizing.
ACS ensures that the centers provide offerings within eight key areas that help decrease child maltreatment and improve family well-being:
- Health & Well-Being;
- Economic Stability & Employment;
- Housing;
- Child Development & Education;
- Parenting Skills;
- Positive Relationships;
- Community Engagement; and,
- Supportive Advocacy.
The other two centers are in East New York, Brooklyn, and the Highbridge section of the Bronx.
We expect about 20-25 children to participate in the event. There will be a presentation where parents will receive information about proper dental care and pamphlets will be shared. They will also have an opportunity to ask questions.
According to NYU College of Dentistry, the single most common chronic childhood disease is dental caries (cavities); it occurs five times more often than asthma and seven times more often than hay fever. Each year, 51 million school hours are lost nationally due to dental-related illness. In addition to pain and infection, issues with oral health can mean difficulty eating or speaking. Children in poverty experience twice the caries (cavities) rate when compared to other children and they are four times more likely to be untreated for these issues. Recent studies conducted at the NYU College of Dentistry have demonstrated that when children lose the family structure that is needed to help manage their diet, brushing, and routine dental care, it affects their oral health, including an increase in tooth decay.
Location:
O.U.R. Place
940 Garrison Avenue
Bronx, NY 10474
