Victoria’s Smiles 4 Miles program is celebrating 20 years of outreach.
In August, Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas congratulated staff and clinicians who have delivered the program to more than 60,000 children at 775 early childhood centres across the state since 2004.
Almost half of all children aged five to 10 years old have signs of tooth decay.
Dental conditions are the highest cause of all potentially preventable hospitalisations in children aged under 10.
“The earlier we teach our children how to keep their teeth clean, the more likely they are to continue these good habits throughout their life, so the Smiles 4 Miles program is providing an invaluable service to our community,” Ms Thomas said.
The Smiles 4 Miles program works closely with early childhood centres, helping them to improve the oral health of preschool-aged children and their families by encouraging healthy eating and drinking and good oral hygiene habits.
The program delivers training to early childhood workers to enhance their knowledge of oral health and provides practical resources including fact sheets, newsletter inserts, and curriculum ideas to childcare centres.
With this support, these early childhood centres can offer Smiles 4 Miles programs free to all eligible enrolled preschool-aged children.
To commemorate 20 years of Smiles 4 Miles, Dental Health Services Victoria awarded grants to local services across the state to help them buy educational materials such as big teeth models and picture books.
