My visit to the Dentist

B u r n d a pB a l i t L i a n g

Walking with your mob to the dentist, you might feel a bit excited or nervous.

So it’s good that you’vecome with your Mum orDad, Nan or Pop, Aunty orUncle… today.

Tell the receptionist at the front desk you’ve arrived.

Arrive early so you can do a bit of reading, drawing, or watch TV!

The dentist will call out your name and in you’ll go.

Have you everbeen to the dentist?

In the dental room you will also meet the dental assistant.

There will be a big chair to sit in.

You will get to have a ride in that big chair.

And feel it go up and down just like magic!

There will be bright lights above you, so the dentist can see

the teeth inyour mouth.

Look’n deadly!

So you’ll have to put on sunnies too!

The dentist will put on …

some goggles …

a mask …

and some gloves.

The dentist will use all kinds of funny things while having a look in your mouth.

Like a small vacuum cleaner and even a little water jet!

How cool is that?

The dentist will ask you to open your mouth just like a crocodile! Then she will look at… and count… all your teeth using a tiny mirror.

Do you know how many teeth you have?

Go on… ask the dentist.

The dentist might ask if you brush your teeth, and if you know how to brush ‘em properly.

Do you brush your teeth every morning and especially every night? Well that’s good!

Your visit to the dentist is over and you can go home now.

Bye. See you next time.

Now that was real easy eh, and you’ve got such a deadly smile.

DPV Health respectfully acknowledgethe Wurundjeri Willum and the Gunung Willam Balluk Elders and peoples as the traditional owners of Wurundjeri lands.

Artist’s Profile - Melissa Brickell Melissa Brickell is of the Yorta Yorta Ulupna and Wiradjeri Aboriginal Clans. She began painting as a teenager, and gave it up to raise her family and go to school to get ‘edumacated’. She picked up the brush again some 20 years later. Most of her art has been

for: the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry – ACMV, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council – NATSICC, Religious Orders and organisations, and also for Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation – VACCHO, Western Health Aboriginal Health Unit, City of Whittlesea Elders Motivated and Deadly, and others.

Her artworks include acrylic on canvas, candles, stones and message sticks. “Painting is a passion for me, so every opportunity I get is an opportunity to be creatively passionate!”

Her artwork for this book was very much inspired by the natural environment, the animals and nature and naturally Aboriginal culture. “Hopefully the children will love the pictures and looking for the ‘burndap balit liang’ of each of the sets of animals; and be encouraged to make sure their own teeth are ‘good and strong’.

For Burndap Balit Liang or good, strong teeth we’d like to know that Aboriginal children in the community Drink Well, Eat Well and Clean Well.

About this book

Acknowledgements• Melissa Brickell, Aboriginal Access Worker, DPV Health for artwork,

text and adaptation

• Local Aboriginal family for modelling in photos

• Book title from Woiwurrung language of the Wurundjeri people

• EMAD Elders, City of Whittlesea for feedback

• Diana Roggenbuck, Smiles 4 Miles Coordinator, EACH for sharing the “My first Dental Visit” book which is the inspiration for this book

• Angela Robinson and Toni Bentley, Project Management, Population Health

The Aboriginal words in the title of this book ‘Burndap Balit Liang’ mean “Good Strong Teeth” in the Woiwurrung language of the Wurundjeri people. At DPV Health we believe in prevention and the promotion of good health. Our organisation has partnered with Dental Health Services for over 10 years to coordinate the Smiles 4 Miles Oral Health Promotion Project in our local area.

Too many children suffer from unnecessary dental conditions which could be avoided by a visit to the dentist. Sadly, dental decay in children is five times more common than asthma and is the highest cause of preventable hospital admissions in children aged 10 years and under. Dental decay occurs even more often in children from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.

DPV Health developed this book to help children understand that a visit to the dentist can be an enjoyable event and not something of which to be frightened. Contact details and instructions on how to make an appointment for DPV Health dental clinics have been included - it is hoped that parents/guardians will know through reading this lovely book to their children that this wonderful health resource is freely available for their families.

DPV Health Dental Services

Children’s Dental Services:• Check-ups /cleaning / fillings / emergency care

• Children should be seen by a dentist or dental therapist starting from two years of age

• Emergency treatment is free for children up to 12 years old

• General treatment is free for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, Pension / Health Care Card holders, Refugee & Asylum Seekers

Make an appointmentFor appointments call 1300 234 263.

DPV Health provides dental services across a wide range of areas, including, Whittlesea Epping, Broadmeadows and Craigieburn.

For more information log on to the DPV Health website: www.dpvhealth.org.au

Additional community Dental Health Clinics can be found at: www.dhsv.org.au/clinic-locations

To talk with an Aboriginal Access Worker call (03) 8401 1370

Your child’s baby teeth are important for them to eat, speak and smile without pain or embarrassment. Early childhood is when many lifetime habits are established and offers the opportunity to prepare for good health in later years.DPV Health believes in prevention and works with the community to educate local residents through the Smiles 4 Miles program within the City of Whittlesea and the City of Hume. Dental Health Services Victoria funds this program.

The DPV Health Promotion Officer/Smiles 4 Miles Coordinator works with the staff and families of early childhood services who can help children and their families learn about oral health. The Health Promotion Officer supports centres with training, delivering student and family learning experiences, developing health policies and evaluation of the program. The three key messages of the program are Eat Well, Drink Well and Clean Well.

For more information contact the DPV Smiles 4 Miles Coordinator: Telephone (03) 9409 8745

Drink well• Tap water is the preferred drink

• Limit sweet drinks - especially between meals

• Choose plain milk over flavoured

Eat well• Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods

every day from the five food groups

• Limit foods containing added sugars

• Healthy meals and snacks are important for healthy teeth

Clean well• Brush teeth along the gum line twice a

day

• Children should use low-fluoride children’s toothpaste from 18 months until they turn six

• Don’t wait for a problem. A child should see a health professional (Maternal and Child Health Nurse, Dentist, Oral Health Therapist or General Practitioner) by age of two for an oral health check

• An oral health professional will discuss a child’s risk level and how frequently they need to visit for an oral health check

Smiles 4 Miles Family Information