In this video, learn about the Early Dental Health Starter Kits Educational Program and learn how to use the oral hygiene items in the kits.
About the Early Dental Health Starter Kits Educational Program
- 50,000 early dental health starter kits have been produced and distributed to public health departments across Nebraska.
- Project partners:
- Nebraska Community Foundation
- UNMC College of Dentistry
- Office of Oral Health and Dentistry, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
 |
 |
|
Purpose of the Early Dental Health Starter KitsThe kits are packed with unique oral hygiene items for children from birth to 6 years old and are given at no cost to new parents and caregivers at hospitals, head starts, daycares, WIC centers and other locations. The kits emphasize the need to establish a dental home by age 1. Dental homes create an ongoing relationship between the patient and the dentist and provide access to continual dental disease prevention and education. |
Statewide Need for Oral Health EducationThere is a great need for oral health education and prevention in Nebraska. A 2016 statewide survey of children in Nebraska's Head Start program found that 46% had decay experience, which is higher than the national average. Early oral health habits can prevent dental decay and early childhood caries, an infectious disease that can lead to severe pain, language development delays and malnutrition. |
Distribution Locations
- Nebraska Hospital Association
- DHHS Office of Oral Health
- Elkhorn Logan Valley Public Health
- Four Corners Health Department
- Lincoln Lancaster County Health Department
- North Central District Health Department
- Northeast Nebraska Public Health Department
- Panhandle Public Health District
- Southeast District Health Department
- Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department
- Three Rivers Public Health Department
- Two Rivers Public Health Department
- UNMC College of Dentistry
- West Central District Health Department