Online cleaning lesson for primary school students Bleiswijk

26-01-2021

“Especially now in times of corona, more attention should be paid to good oral health,” according to Manon van Splunter, chairman of NVM dental hygienists. “But how do you take care of that? Reason for her to provide an online Keep your mouth healthy! lesson at De Klimophoeve primary school in Bleiswijk.

“It was recently reported in the Jeugdjournaal that there has been a decline in the oral health of children's teeth during this corona period. That's too bad. Especially now, more attention should be paid to good oral health,” according to Manon van Splunter, chairman of the Dutch Association of Dental Hygienists (NVM dental hygienists). “But how do you take care of that? Including by brushing properly,” she says. Reason for her to provide an online Keep your mouth healthy! lesson at De Klimophoeve primary school in Bleiswijk on Tuesday afternoon, January 26, in collaboration with the Ivoren Kruis and Colgate-elmex. For this purpose, students themselves bring materials from the cleaning suitcase to the doors, so that all children can participate in the lesson at home. “A great collaboration with a shared interest, namely that of a healthy mouth,” says Manon.

“Besides the fact that it is fun to teach this brushing lesson, the intention is also to show that oral care providers can now carry out their good prevention activities in other ways. By providing this online brushing lesson, Manon from Splunter shows that it is also possible to work on the prevention of caries and other oral problems during this corona time," says Hans Prakken, board member of Ivoren Kruis.

NVM dental hygienists support the joint project 'Keep your mouth healthy' of the Ivory Cross and Colgate-elmex. The Ivory Cross (1910) is a scientific association of dentists, dental hygienists and other dental care providers and has the ambition to raise oral health in the Netherlands to such a high level that a healthy mouth and perfect teeth are guaranteed for every resident from an early age to high age comes within reach. Colgate-elmex is a partner of the Ivory Cross and supports the 'Keep your mouth healthy' project by making cleaning cases, toothpaste samples and toothbrushes available for brushing lessons. This way, the children can practice brushing their teeth during class and receive the correct instructions.

The Ivoren Kruis and Colgate-elmex facilitate the brushing lessons in which dental care providers and teachers (now more than 3,000) provide the brushing lessons in the classroom. This successful project has been recognized by the RIVM as an intervention for a healthy lifestyle. Since the start of the project, more than 30.000 given cleaning lessons with which more than 900.0000 children and their parents have been reached with the prevention message: brush your teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste.

With this message, NVM dental hygienists, the Ivory Cross and Colgate-elmex emphasize the importance of good oral care, even during Corona and hope that this example of an online lesson will stimulate the creativity of others to do the same. The website ( https://www.houjemondgezond.nl/ ) is full of ideas for teaching a lesson.