Dr Mariam Abdulmalik, Managing Director of PHCC (third right), with other officials at the opening of PHCC's Second Scientific Research Conference 2016, at QNCC yesterday. Pic: Abdul Basit/ The Peninsula
In an initiative to combat dental caries among children, the Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) will begin a new screening programme at schools in February 2017, said a senior official yesterday.
In a pilot project, mobile screening units will visit Independent and private schools to screen and create awareness on dental caries — tooth decay or cavity — among students between the ages of six and 12 years, said Dr Asmaa Alkhti, Manager, Oral Health Division, PHCC.
The new project will be a new project of the School-based Oral Health Program established in 1988. “The present School-based Oral Health Program is not sufficient to meet the growing needs. So we are restructuring the programme and expanding it. At present, the programme is health-centre based, now we are taking one part of it to schools. So, awareness and screening activities will be held at schools from February, and treatment will be provided at health centres,” said Dr Alkhti, speaking on the sidelines of PHCC’s second Scientific Research Conference.
“Now the programme is for children between grade one and four, and they are six and ten years old. The pilot phase of the new program will target the entire primary school from kindergarten to grade six. Once its completed, we will evaluate the outcomes and hopefully implement it for all school students up to 18 years of age,” she added.
In Qatar, an average of 80 percent school students have some form of tooth decay and it’s the highest prevalent disease among children here as well as around the world.
“Under the School-based Oral Health Program, in the past three years nearly 33,000 students were screened for tooth decay, 28,000 children got treated for 50,000 teeth at Mesaimeer, Abu Baker Al Siddiq and Al Daayen health centres,” said Dr AlKhti.
She also made a presentation on ‘Implementing a School-based Oral Health Program in Qatar: Lessons and Opportunities for health Improvement,’ at PHCC’s second Scientific Research Conference being held at the Qatar National Convention Centre.
Dr Mariam Abdulmalik, Managing Director of PHCC, and many other internationally-renowned and local health care research scientists were present at the conference.
The two-day conference aims at highlighting the role of primary care research in strengthening the health system, promoting family care and preventing chronic disease.
Dr Hanan Al Mujalli, Executive Director, Clinical Affairs, PHCC, said, “Primary Health Corporation continues in its mission to lead in providing the highest standard of health care to Qatar’s population, and to do this, we recognise that PHCC also has to be research-led and research-informed. Having successfully launched this conference in December 2015, we decided to build on this foundation and create this forum providing a platform for us to share best practice and identify potential collaborators to work together for better health outcomes.”
