MORE
homeless and vulnerable people across the UK will be able to access free dental
care after Dentaid launched its second charity dental unit at the BDIA
Showcase.
The
vehicle will visit homeless shelters, soup kitchens and day centres with teams
of volunteers providing dental screening, emergency treatment and oral health
advice for people who find it difficult to access dental care.
Since
Dentaid launched its first mobile dental unit in 2016, the charity has been
travelling the country providing free treatment for many of the most vulnerable
people in our society. Homeless people, children in areas of poverty, fishermen
and those living in places where it is difficult to register with an NHS
practice, have all benefitted from clinics carried out in schools, community
buildings, hostels and fishing ports from Cornwall to Aberdeenshire.
In
the first nine months of 2019, 475 homeless and hard-to-reach people have been
seen in Dentaid clinics and the charity receives requests for new projects
every week. The new unit will enable Dentaid to run more clinics with one
vehicle stationed in the south of England and one in the north.
The
second vehicle, formerly used by community dental services, was bought at
auction and both units have been reconditioned and branded thanks to Bupa’s
support. X-ray equipment has been
provided by Acteon and organisers of the BDIA Showcase, MA Exhibitions, invited
Dentaid to reveal the new unit to the industry at the BDIA Showcase.
“We know that 70 per cent of homeless people have
experienced dental problems and thanks to our incredible volunteers we are in a
unique position to help them. This is
about breaking down barriers, helping people out of pain and restoring their
self-confidence. We have regular clinics
in Leeds, York, Winchester, Hampshire and Wiltshire but we know there are many
other homeless communities that need our help and we’re looking forward to launching
new projects thanks to our second dental unit.”
Speaking
of the partnership, Gabriela Pueyo, General Manager at Bupa Dental Care said:
“We’re really excited to begin our work with Dentaid and help support them to
provide oral care for some of the most vulnerable people in our society. What
makes this extra special is that we asked our employees to vote for which
organisation they wanted to make our official charity partner and they
overwhelmingly chose Dentaid.”
In
addition to supporting the new dental unit, Bupa Dental Care has also provided
funding, via its apprenticeship levy, for Dentaid to hire an administration
apprentice and made Dentaid the beneficiary of its Pennies scheme – a digital
charity box available in all Bupa Dental Care practices.
Gabriela
Pueyo continued: “As one of the largest dental providers, with more than 470
practices across the UK, we’re in a great position to provide volunteers for
Dentaid’s mobile units as they travel across the country. We’re really proud to
be able to support such an important organisation.”
