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Mobile dental team says it served more than 600 Taylor County students, reports high cavity rates
Summary
A North Florida Medical mobile dental outreach representative told the Taylor County School Board the program treated more than 600 students last year, with unusually high numbers categorized as moderate and high risk for tooth decay; the team plans visits in October and winter and is opening a Madison dental clinic for follow-up care.
Betty Cable of North Florida Medical told the Taylor County School Board on Aug. 5 that the program’s mobile dental unit served students across Taylor County during the last school year and will return for visits in October and again in winter.
Cable said the outreach visited Taylor County Primary, Taylor County Elementary and Steinhatchee and that the program “served over 600 children.” She said 245 of those students were categorized as moderate risk and 309 were high risk for dental disease. Cable said the team placed sealants on more than 250 students and provided cleanings for nearly 300, and that almost all children seen received fluoride varnish.
“The silver diamine fluoride . . . actually stops the decay,” Cable said, noting the program applied that treatment to nearly 1,500 individual teeth during the year. She said the treatment reduced pain and abscesses among children the team saw.
School board members asked how the county compares with neighboring counties. Cable said Taylor County’s patients show higher risk levels than the program’s other service counties; she listed Gadsden and Okaloosa counties as comparisons and said the outreach has worked in Okaloosa for about 12 years and in Gadsden about six years, while Taylor is in its fourth year of the program.
Cable said services for students who sign a parental consent form are provided at no charge to families, and the program files insurance where available to reduce costs. She also said the outreach recently hired a dentist and will place dental services at a new Madison Dental Center for follow-up care, while continuing school-based services.
Board members and school staff asked about consent form return rates and coverage for older students. Cable said getting consent forms back from older students is a challenge and that current funding and staffing focus on pre-K through fifth grade, where early preventive care has the largest impact. She said the team can expand if more hygienists and providers are available.
The presentation closed with the board thanking the outreach team and noting scheduled visits in October and winter; the board did not take a formal vote on the presentation.
