Doha, Qatar: Qatar celebrates National Oral Health Awareness Month in September of each year. The Ministry of Public Health, in partnership with government health institutions, has launched a joint national campaign concerned with oral and dental health. The campaign aims to enhance awareness of the importance of oral and dental health and prevent diseases that may affect the oral cavity, which may adversely affect one’s health and quality of life.
“Over the course of four weeks, this national campaign stresses the importance of undergoing periodic check-ups of oral and dental health, maintaining a balanced diet, practicing effective oral hygiene habits such as brushing and flossing teeth, and avoiding bad habits such as smoking and thumb sucking in children. Furthermore, the campaign highlights the strong relationship between oral health and overall health,” said Dr Rami Assad, Senior Consultant Oral and Dental Surgery and Director of Dentistry at Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC).
The campaign uses a multi-faceted approach to reach different segments of Qatar’s population. The first two weeks of the campaign focus on enhancing public awareness of oral health, utilizing social media platforms, and engaging National Museum of Qatar in its activities. PHCC has allocated a distinguished group of dentists to visit schools and educate students about the principles of mouth care through fun and informative activities and lectures.
Dr Assad added that during its third week, the campaign activities will be held in Qatar Rehabilitation Institute and Rumailah Hospital while providing specialized information tailored specifically to older people. The fourth week will focus on individuals who suffer from heart disease, given the clear link between oral health and cardiovascular health in general.
Additionally, the activities will be held at the Heart Hospital with targeted educational materials designed to enable individuals with heart disease to maintain their oral health more effectively.
PHCC took the opportunity to invite people of all age groups to take part in this campaign and benefit from the services offered in dental clinics at the corporation’s health centers.
PHCC’s dental clinics, distributed through all health centers, provide comprehensive primary health services in both general and specialized dentistry, for all age groups. These services focus on prevention and early detection of dental and gum diseases and their treatment if they fall under the primary care level, in addition to coordinating with Hamad General Hospital to refer cases that require secondary or tertiary care for treatment.
The services provided in the General Dental Clinics include preventive treatments such as fluoride varnish application, cosmetic fillings, gum cleaning in case of gum disease, such as scaling (removal of plaque and tartar), or in case of periodic preventive cleaning. In addition to root canal fillings and tooth extraction services for simple cases.
The Specialized Dental Clinics, on the other hand, include four specialties:
• Oral Surgery Clinic, which deals with surgical tooth extractions, wisdom teeth, and other surgical treatments;
• Root Canal Treatment Clinic that provides canal treatment services for the back teeth;
• Pediatric Dental Clinic, which provides dental services for children and educate parents on the importance of practicing good oral hygiene;
• and Gum Disease Clinic that provides advanced periodontal treatments for supporting gum tissues affected by gum disease.
Dr Assad added that PHCC offers a range of preventive programs targeting all age groups that include taking care of children’s health —starting from the mother’s pregnancy period to children under five—, then taking care of preventive health for school students. In addition to launching a group of national initiatives that aim to detect oral and dental diseases earlier by inviting adults to undergo periodic check-ups.
PHCC also targets older persons by offering a range of services and programs to take care of their oral and dental health, with a focus on enhancing the efficiency of the medical staff in the country by providing workshops and training courses for all medical specialties to take care of oral and dental health for all segments of society.
