Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Free Dental Care

The Health Care Academy of the School District of Ladysmith is offering free oral (dental) health care for students who are on Medical Assistance or do not have dental insurance and can not afford dental care. The dental care is being provided at our Dental Assistant Lab located on the third floor of the Ladysmith Middle School. Ladysmith High School students who are in the Dental Assistant (Technical Diploma) Program offered by our partner Chippewa Valley Technical College use this lab throughout the year for their educational programming and training.

For those choosing to take advantage of this free health care program, their student will be removed from their classroom and brought to the lab for a short period of time. Transportation from a school to LMS will be provided and the driver will be a school district employee. Occasionally more than one student may be transported at a time. When the dental procedure is completed the student will then be returned to his/her classroom. One of our licensed dental hygienists and local dentist volunteers are providing the services. Some of the preventative, dental services students are receiving are: sealants, fluoride treatment, teeth cleaning, digital x-rays, teeth mapping, oral hygiene instruction, decay identification, and referral for additional treatment.

Participation in this dental care program is voluntary. If a student has a medical condition, parents should first consult their physician prior to authorizing any dental treatment. To participate in this dental care program, parent/guardians must complete the health history and consent form and sign the Privacy Practices Notification.

As always, the School District of Ladysmith is dedicated to provide outstanding educational services to our students and community. However, as educators we realize that unless our students are healthy, we cannot fully educate them. Studies repeatedly show there is a direct correlation between a healthy mouth and a healthy body. Students struggling with health issues are not able to concentrate and take advantage of their full educational potential. It is with this in mind, that these dental services are being offered.