Oral health
Providing services that help the local population improve and maintain good oral health is an important priority for public health.
Oral Health in Children
Did you know that by age 5, nearly half of all children in Tower Hamlets experience tooth decay which can lead to missed time at school and trips to hospital. In fact, tooth decay is the most common reason for hospital admissions in children aged 5 – 9 years for the removal of teeth under general anaesthetic.
The good news is that tooth decay is preventable. Supporting your child to brush their teeth with a fluoride toothpaste twice every day and taking them to the dentist once a year will help to keep their teeth healthy. It’s also important to register with an NHS dentist.
While it's not always easy to avoid sugary foods and drinks, supporting your child to reduce their sugar intake, especially at snack times, will mean they are much less likely to suffer tooth decay.
Did you know that in Tower Hamlets, children in Reception and Year 1 are eligible for free fluoride varnish applications? This fluoride varnish service is delivered through primary school by Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust and is available to all students.
Special care dentistry is available to children and young people who have a social, psychological, learning or physical disability and who could need dental care to be adapted for them. They may also find it difficult to access mainstream dentistry.
This includes patients with fears of dental care or those who need adapted surgeries that can manage patients in wheelchairs. To apply for access to this service, complete an online self-referral form or speak to a health professional about a referral. If you would like to learn more about children’s oral health in Tower Hamlets and how we’re working to improve oral health, please see our Joint Strategic Needs Assessment on Children’s Oral Health
Oral health of adults
In Tower Hamlets, fewer adults access dental services and a high proportion of adults have poor oral hygiene compared to London and England. Some 77 per centof adults have gum disease compared to 50% in England. A higher proportion of Asians (65 per cent) have gum disease compared to the other ethnic groups (white 50 per cent, black 44 per cent).
Work we are doing locally to tackle this issue
Improving oral health in children is important because poor oral health in children is a predictor of poor oral health in adults. The role of dental public health is to provide advice on effective interventions, deliver oral health programmes and ensure co-ordination between dental providers.
Some areas of work include:
- Smiling Start - a programme targeting families with children under 2 years of age
- Brushing for Life programme - targeting health professionals working with children aged under 5
- Happy Smiles - a school-based health promotion programme aligned to PSHE education
- Healthy Teeth in Schools - a fluoride varnish programme for 3 to 6-year-old children, providing dental prevention intervention and access to primary care services for those with urgent treatment needs
- Training local dentists to identify early stages of mouth cancer and raise awareness of risk factors including alcohol and tobacco consumption in cigarettes, paan and shisha
- Promoting oral health in faith and cultural groups and organisations
- Educating, training and supporting looked after children services, care leavers, and carers and service providers for older people through community organisations and residential homes
- Improving oral health of people living with HIV, the homeless, those in sheltered housing and those with learning disabilities.
Services
Anyone living, studying or working in Tower Hamlets can access good-quality NHS dental services.
You can find a dental practice that's convenient for you. Then contact them to make an appointment.
Out-of-hours dental service
For urgent dental problems outside of practice hours: 020 7377 7151
The service operates:
Monday to Friday from 6.30pm-10pm
Saturday and Sunday from 7.30am-3pm
From 7:30am-8pm on bank holidays.
Useful external links