A grassroots initiative by Coffs Harbour dentists volunteering their own time is helping doctors in the local hospital’s Emergency Department (ED) to manage dental emergencies.
In an impressive response, nearly 30 community-minded dentists put their hands up to help when the pilot project was being established. The program is the direct result of consultation through North Coast Primary Health Network between ED representatives and local dentists. It provides a clear example of how facilitating inter-professional conversations can lead to innovations that benefit the community.
The Emergency Dental on-call service pilot project started in July 2018. The rostered service will provide a consulting dentist each weekend to help medical colleagues manage uncertain dental situations.
Program organisers Dr Kate Amos and Kirsty Christensen expect the pilot to be well-received given that up to 4% of presentations to Emergency may be due to dental or oral health concerns.
You can read more about this exciting program in the August edition of HealthSpeak magazine. We will alert you when the magazine goes online.