The Division of Dental Healthof the

Virginia Department of HealthPresents

This Training Module for the

School Fluoride Mouthrinse Program

Division of Dental Health

Healthy smiles are important for many reasons. Children need healthy teeth for chewing and speaking. To help prevent cavities for children your school has agreed to participate in the school fluoride mouthrinse program.

• 1. Children need one systemic fluoride which they can swallow: fluoridated community water or prescription fluoride supplements.

• 2. Children need topical fluorides which they do not swallow: fluoride toothpastes, mouthrinses, gel treatments. The school fluoride mouthrinse is a topical fluoride.

Children Need Two Types of Fluoride to Help Prevent Decay-

Systemic & Topical

This training module explains the appropriate steps for coordinating the fluoride

mouthrinse program at your school.

• New school staff need to review this module at the beginning of each school year.

• Printed guidelines, permission slips, ordering forms and annual reporting forms are included in the training notebook.

The fluoride mouthrinse is shipped directly to your school. The fluoride needs to be kept in a locked closet or storage area, so consider the size of your storage area when ordering. Do not store in a warm area.

Each case contains all of the supplies necessary to begin the fluoride mouthrinse program: 288 unit doses of fluoride, napkins and trashbags with ties.

Check the box label for the month/year expiration date and for the fluoride flavor. The expiration date is also printed on the unit doses.

The fluoride mouthrinse is available in several flavors. Your school may want to try different flavors during the year. When placing an order by email or FAX, please indicate flavor, number of cases and a street address for shipping.

Each case of fluoride contains an instruction sheet which can be copied for teachers.

The training notebook contains guidelines and samples of parent education materials regarding the fluoride mouthrinse program.

Once parent permission forms are returned and the numbers of participating children are determined, unit doses and napkins can be counted out ahead of time and placed in a trash bag. On “swish day” the bags can be delivered to classrooms or placed in teacher mailboxes for pick up.

• Division of Dental Health staff can provide on site training for new school coordinators and provide instruction to children.

• We suggest practice “swishing” sessions with water at the beginning of the school year for first graders who have not rinsed before.

Training of School Staff/Children

One unit dose of fluoride and one napkin are passed out to each child. The children are instructed to wait and “swish” together as a class.

All children are instructed to open their cups by pulling on the paper tab with one hand while holding onto the cup.

Young children may need some help in opening the cups.

The children put the fluoride in their mouth and begin swishing for one minute.

Remind the children to close their eyes or to watch the classroom clock - they should not look at each other to avoid giggling...

The teacher may choose to “swish” with the children, or use the minute to reinforce gooddental health habits for preventing cavities.

All children are instructed to spit slowly and quietly into the cup. It is important for the teacher to observe that children are spitting out the fluoride mouthrinse and not swallowing it. If children are not spitting out then they can not continue in the program until they can follow instructions.

The children are instructed to wipe their mouth with the napkin.

After wiping their mouth with the napkin, the children are instructed to gently push the napkin into the cup to absorb the liquid.

The trash bag is passed and each child drops their cup into the bag. Children are instructed not to touch anyone else’s cup or napkin.

Twist ties are provided to close the trash bag before disposing of it. It is acceptable to place the closed trash bag in the classroom trash can.

Thank you for participating in the school fluoride mouthrinse program and for promoting healthy smiles!

If you have questions about the school fluoride mouthrinse program contact:

• Sharon Logue, RDH, MPH School Fluoride Mouthrinse Coordinator Division of Dental Health Virginia Department of Health 804-786-3519 slogue@vdh.state.va.us

The Division of Dental Health would like to thank Alberta Smith Elementary School in Midlothian, Virginia,

Chesterfield County Public Schools, for their support in producing this training module. Thank you to the young "stars" Taylor Wells and Jordan Burgess for being in the

photographs.

Produced bySharon Logue, RDH, MPHDivision of Dental Health/VDH

Graphics and music byRobert Barefoot (WIC/VDH)

Photography byAl Cook Photography