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HNHU Dental Info
If your child is in dental pain or has cavities which you can easily see in their mouth, please call the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit to book a dental screening and apply to have your child placed on the Healthy Smiles Ontario Emergency and Essential Services Stream.
Contact Information
To make an appointment or for more information contact the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit at 519-426-6170 Ext. 3293 for Norfolk or 905-318-6623 Ext. 3293 for Haldimand.
More information is available below.
If you cannot afford to pay for dental care for your children (ages 0-17), we have programs that can help.
Healthy Smiles Ontario is a government-funded dental program that provides free preventive, routine, and emergency dental services to eligible children and youth 17 and younger from low-income families.
There are 3 streams (versions) of the Healthy Smiles Ontario Program:
Healthy Smiles Ontario Core Stream (HSO Core) |
The eligibility for this version is based solely on household income Visit Healthy Smiles to see if your family is eligible and apply online. Eligible children aged 0-17 receive a dental card that renews yearly and provides dental coverage that is used like private dental insurance at the dentist of your choice. |
Healthy Smiles Ontario Emergency and Essential Services Stream |
The eligibility for this version is based on whether or not your child has a dental concern Your family must also be in receipt of an Ontario Child Tax Benefit Your child must be screened by a Health Unit Dental Hygienist and have an obvious dental concern Eligible children aged 0-17 receive a dental card valid for one year that provides dental coverage that is used like private dental insurance at the dentist of your choice. |
Healthy Smiles Ontario Preventive Services Only Stream (HSO-PSO) |
If your child is screened and does not have an obvious dental concern they can attend the Health Unit Dental Clinics for free preventive services. An HSO-PSO form is signed yearly for enrollment. Your family must be in receipt of an Ontario Child Tax Benefit We provide a dental home for your child until they have a dental concern and become HSO-EESS eligible. They can always return to HSO-PSO after a year of HSO-EESS. |
Orthodontic treatment including space maintainers are not covered by HSO-EESS or HSO Core
Our dental hygienists and dental assistants visit elementary schools every year to provide free oral health screenings to students in kindergarten and grade two. At some schools, we may also screen students in other grades. The screening is a brief visual assessment of the child’s dental condition. Parents/guardians receive a dental report card after the screening to let them know if they see any problems, such as large cavities, in the child’s mouth.
The school screenings help us to:
- Identify children with urgent oral health needs or other oral health issues
- Provide essential preventive oral health services
- Link eligible students with free oral health programs for children and youth ages 0-17
- Monitor the oral health needs in our communities
What happens at the screening?
The dental hygienist takes a quick look in the mouth (usually under a minute) with a sterilized mouth mirror while the Certified Dental Assistant records dental findings and statistics. They also:
- Use a no-touch technique
- Wear appropriate personal protective equipment such as non-latex gloves, masks, eye protection
- Use appropriate hand hygiene
- Issue a dental "report card" to each student
- Follow-up on children who need urgent dental care
Parents will be notified of dental screenings through forms delivered to each household prior to school screenings. When receiving these screening notifications, families may also decide that they would like all of their children screened, in addition to the scheduled kindergarten and grade two members, and can contact the HNHU dental program and let us know.
It is best if all eligible children are screened. However, parents can decline their child’s participation by contacting the health unit dental program as directed on the notification form.
There are two no-cost preventive Health Unit Dental clinic sites. At these sites, children aged 0-17 receive free dental health screening and preventive services.
Please call us to book an appointment. Children are screened and if they do not have cavities and need the care of a dentist, then they can enroll in the Healthy Smiles Ontario Preventive Services Only where they can receive the services below at no cost at the Health Unit Dental Clinics.
If a child does have an obvious concern, they can enroll in Healthy Smiles Ontario Emergency and Essential Services Stream and receive care at a dental office for one year.
At our dental clinics, we make sure your child’s teeth are developing in a healthy way. At the visit, the dental team will:
- Screen for cavities and signs of tooth decay
- Screen for healthy tooth development
- Provide tips on how to keep your child’s mouth clean and cavity-free
- Provide free fluoride treatment, cleaning and sealants if needed
- Enroll your child in Healthy Smiles Ontario Emergency and Essential Services Stream to have cavities fixed by a Dentist
- Book your child back 6 months after their appointment so that your child is regularly screened and receiving preventive services.
Dental and Immunization Evening Clinic 2023 Schedule
Location: Houghton Public School
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