DENTAL TREATMENT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 August 1941, Page 6

DENTAL TREATMENT

FREE SERVICE FOR SCHOOL

CHILDREN

SHOULD BE COMPULSORY.

in opinion of masterton SECRETARY.

Discussing the Government’s proposals for free dental treatment for school children who come within the scope of the scheme. Mr J. G. McFarlane, secretary to the Masterton Dental Clinic Committee, considers that this valu-t able weirk is now on the right lines and he hopes that parents will back up the Government’s efforts by taking sufficient interest in seeing that their children receive regular treatment. “For some unaccountable reason,” Mr McFarlane stated, “some parents show a definite prejudice in making use of the clinic service. Such an attitude- could be conceded were the parents prepared to see that dental treatment was carried out by the private dentist but experience has showrt that their attitude is simply an excuse and many such children throughout the schools show a degree of decay and neglect in the care of their teeth, which to say the least, amounts to a most unsatisfactory state of affairs. “Now that the service has been made free and it is to be understood that free treatment commences in the 1942 schocl. year, I should like to see the Government go one step further and make dental treatment part of the child’s education and compulsory. I know there would be strong opposition to such a suggestion, but I also know that in the next decade we would not be showing statistics in this Dominion that out of every 100 men examined only eight had sound teeth.

“The financial assistance to committees extended by the Government is on a generous scale, but unfortunately for Masterton, it does not own its own building and the allocation of £25 per nurse will not meet overhead expenses. The annual charges are: Rent £B4; cleaning £2O; gas and light £l5; laundry £2O; telephone £8: postage, stationery, and sundries £10: total £157. This, less the Government subsidy of £25 per nurse, leaves a commitment of £B2 per year. “The Masterton Clinic is housed in a building owned by the Trust Lands Trust, and it should be generally known the trustees charge an annual rent for' their building and as regularly year in, year out. they write if off, as the clinic funds have not been in a position to meet rent charges. Under a system of free treatment surely a district like Masterton is not going to rely on. the generosity of the Trust Lands Trust to provide, in perpetuity, a free building for its clinic. “The public generally and particularly parents are vitally concerned in dental health and it is to be hoped that the question will be taken up throughout the district and where possible school clinics established where the service will be brought to the child at the school and become part of the daily education, and instead of a portion of pupils receiving treatment, every child would be induced to have a 100 percent healthy mouth.”