Importance of oral health of learners
Joan M. Santos
THE Department of Education (DepEd), in support of the oral health program of the government, and pursuant to the Department of Health’s order in the effective and efficient supervision and coordination of the total public health services in the country, had issued Department Orders (DO) and DepEd Memorandums (DM) to promote and maintain good oral health among learners through the prevention and control of oral diseases.
These are DO No.73, s. 2007 (Promoting Oral Health in Public Elementary Schools); DM No.255, s. 2008 (Expanded Universal Medical and Dental Check-up); DM No.65, s. 2009 (Implementation of the Essential Health Care Program (EHCP) for the School Children); DO. No. 10, s.2016 (Policy and Guidelines for the Comprehensive Water, Hygiene and Sanitation in Schools (WinS) Program); DO No.13, s. 2017 (Policy and Guidelines on Healthy Food and Beverage Choices in Schools and in DepEd Offices); Series of Issuances on School-Based Feeding Programs (SBFP); and, DO No.28, s. 2018 (Oplan Kalusugan sa Department of Education (OK sa DepEd)).
The Department has deemed it urgent to draw up a Comprehensive Oral Health Policy to improve oral hygiene knowledge and practice to address the prevalence of dental caries and other oral health problems that impacts on the teaching-learning process, affecting overall productivity and performance.
This policy aims to improve the health status of all learners by ensuring the effective implementation of a holistic and comprehensive oral health program.
This policy aims to ensure the effective implementation of a holistic and comprehensive oral health program for K-12 learners in all public schools and all DepEd personnel: a) Provide basic and adequate preventive and curative oral health care to K-12 learners and DepEd personnel in need of such services, and referrals for those in need of further oral health management;
b) Educate and inform all learners, teaching and non-teaching personnel on correct oral health and hygiene practices, oral health nutrition, oral health problems which may be due to unhealthy behaviors related to diet, hygiene, nutrition, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption; c) Engage the active participation of learners in daily toothbrushing activities for the promotion of oral health;
d) Upgrade the competencies of dental personnel through continuing professional development through trainings relevant to the needs of the dental services; e) Ensure the integrity, accuracy, and accessibility of oral health records and reports to strengthen the evidence-based approach to promoting oral health and the basis for planning and programming; f) Intensify advocacy among school administrators, teachers, and parents to give priority to the children’s oral health by implementing policies focused on sustaining positive oral health habits among learners; and, g) Maximize opportunities for enhancing implementation of the oral health program through close collaboration with various partners and stakeholders, including other government agencies, organizations, local government units (LGUs), other institutions, communities, and families.
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