The Bay of Plenty District Health Board (BOPDHB) Community Dental Service for children and teenagers re-opens on Thursday 9 September 2021.

The service was closed for three weeks during Alert Level 3 and 4 in 2021 (and for seven weeks in 2020) and these closures have impacted on the way dental services for children and teens have been delivered in the community.

If your child or teenager had an appointment booked with the BOPDHB Community Dental Service over lockdown, you will be contacted in the coming days to re-schedule.

For some children and teenagers, their annual check-ups will be postponed allowing appointments to be offered to those most in need:

• those needing urgent or emergency care
• those most overdue to be seen
• our Year 8 students who will be transferring out of the service this year
• our youngest and most vulnerable children, and
• our Māori and Pacific tamariki.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact phone 0800 TALK TEETH (0800 825583) or email CH4kidsdentaladmin@bopdhb.govt.nz

To help keep everyone safe and well, our Community Dental Service must follow Ministry of Health and Dental Council of NZ guidelines:

• All phone enquiries will now be assessed and given appointments or advice, as required
• All clinics will have personal protective equipment available for staff use, due to our consistent use of aerosol generating procedures (high speed drills, water and air sprays) – these aid the spread of airborne viruses like COVID 19 Delta variant
• All clinics will follow all contact tracing requirements.

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