Overview

Childsmile is a national health improvement programme focused on reducing oral health inequalities among children in Scotland. The three main components are Toothbrushing, Fluoride Varnish and Community and Practice, which together deliver education and support to children in nurseries and schools, embed support workers into the community and provide early intervention in preventive care for children aged two and above to improve the oral health of children in Scotland.

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Distributing multiple packs to children and supporting daily supervised toothbrushing in nurseries and schools.

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Addressing oral health inequalities through embedding support workers in communities to offer oral health support.

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Delivering preventive care interventions for children aged two years and upwards to children who are at increased risk of dental decay.

Impact

• The 2020 Childsmile programme results show a decline in tooth decay among 5-year-olds, with only 26% experiencing decay. While decay rates remain higher in deprived children, they also dropped significantly from 79% to 55% (2007-2020).

• Data from the Childsmile software informs local and national improvements, embedded trials, intervention effectiveness studies, and has contributed to over 30 research papers through data linkage.

• The Childsmile Programme has significantly improved children's oral health in Scotland, influencing research and driving policy changes at government level.

• Childsmile's preventative, community-based approach has transformed dental care for Scottish children from birth to age 12, benefiting around 730,000 annually since 2007.

• Childsmile was officially added to the primary care dental contract in 2011, and in 2012 was included in Scotland's universal child health surveillance programme.

Our Role

Health Informatics Centre (HIC), University of Dundee, developed invaluable data collection software and continues to support and update this data. The software consists of an NHS administration website providing functionality such as user and establishment management, diary/event creation, dental contact and validation, data query validation and data reporting at local and national level. The system currently has over 450 active users across Scotland with over 300 unique users logging in monthly.

Testimonials

“The Childsmile programme shows what can be achieved when we have a real focus on prevention - in particular in the world of public health."
Maureen Watt
Public Health Minister

“The Health Informatics Centre has worked collaboratively with the Childsmile programme at all levels for over 20 years, adapting to the needs of the programme.”
Donna Kirk
Programme Manager

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