Nearly 150 area children visit Lincoln for free dental check up from UNMC

Keeping your mouth healthy and clean is important, and students at UNMC’s Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing use dental day to teach that lesson to children. Nearly 150 kids from across east Nebraska came to Lincoln for a free teeth cleaning and learn about oral health.

Done twice a year, once in Lincoln and later in the panhandle during summer, this is the 35th “Dental Day” since 2001. While it’s important for the children, it’s another learning experience for students.

“Students get to work with faculty under a different set of circumstances and faculty gets to mirror that behavior. The students learn what it is to give back to the community,” Dr. David Brown of the College of Dentistry said.

It’s a bit of an introduction to the real world for dentistry students.

“It’s nice to get experience with a lot of different younger kids with a lot of different backgrounds. Some of them this is their first dental experience so just being a part of making that really pleasant, making them aware that the dentist is not a scary place,” Emily Reimer, a senior dentistry student, said.

Many people underestimate the importance of oral health and how it can affect the rest of the body. The College of Dentistry hopes to get that message into children while they’re young.

All dentistry students are involved, but the ultimate goal of dental day is to show kids that the dentist is not something to be afraid of.

“Making those first few dental appointments really pleasant, really fun, knowing that it’s not a scary place. We’re easy to talk to, we’re here to help,” Reimer said.

After the kids were seen they were given bags with toothpaste, floss, and all the other teeth cleaning essentials.