A recent dental blitz resulted in treating more than 50 children who needed dental care under general anaesthesia.
This was undertaken at Southland Hospital and also using Mobile surgical services in Balclutha, Gore and Queenstown.
The week culminated in a two-day clinic in Gore, on March 24 and 25, which was a highlight of the week for the combined dental team.
Using Reset and Restore funding, which focuses on equity and long waiting lists, a combined dental team targeted the waitlist using the Mobile Surgical Bus and rooms at Gore Hospital during the weekend when the bus would not have normally been used.
Te Whatu Ora Southern Dental Surgeon Tim Mackay said more than a quarter of the planned care for that GA list was completed using all these resources across Southern.
The Surgical Bus travels around New Zealand on a five-week cycle, and Mackay gained access to funding to use it while it would have been sitting in Gore on two down days.
“We had the opportunity to have all this access to theatre, we had the funding, and with the help of Gore Hospital it all came together. That's what made the two days in Gore so special. It all aligned together at the right time,” Mackay said.
The dental team of nine came from throughout New Zealand including an anesthetist from the North Island and other health professionals from Timaru, Wanaka and Invercargill to work.
Treatment included fillings, extractions and fitting stainless steel crowns and children ranged in age from three-years-old to 12-years-old.
Mackay said it was a very relaxed environment and the team was focused on treating as many patients as it could.
“It was a slick and efficient operation during those two days in Gore.”
He hopes the blitz is something that can be repeated in the future, particularly the partnership of all the teams and organisations working together in a rural region to assist.
If it could be repeated in the future Mackay likes to think the GA waiting list may get back to pre-Covid-19 levels.
“The Reset and Restore Funding is for that particular use, to try and assist in bringing waiting lists down again.”
As a dental surgeon he always encourages good dental care, and if a rural town does not have fluoridated water (which can help reduce the severity of decay), Mackay says children and adults should be using fluoridated toothpaste and brushing their teeth twice a day.
The Mobile Health Surgical bus was put to good use in Gore recently to help children receive dental care. Image: Supplied by Mobile Health/File image.
