On March 22, the federal government announced that it wants to play a bigger role in increasing access to dental care and improving Canadians’ oral health. As a dentist, I’m excited about the benefits that greater investment in oral health and focus on access to care will have for the approximately 33% of Canadians who don’t have employer-based dental benefits.
I’ve spent much of my career trying to bring attention to this problem. For 30 years, I’ve provided dental care to adults with special health care needs in PEI. Access to health care for these individuals is a challenge at the best of times, and they often are unable to advocate for themselves. Over the years, as my patients grow older, I have shared in their experiences of changing life circumstances and health. Some have moved into long-term care settings.
Scaling up from existing programs would enable different places to start filling the gaps that are particular to their own communities. Places like Newfoundland and British Columbia don’t have seniors programs. Some programs include preventative care, while others do not. Federal funding to bolster provincial and territorial programs also allows for a smooth transition process without disruption to the dental care that most Canadians already have.
The last two years have been a challenging time for dentistry, as for all Canadians. At the beginning of the pandemic, dental practices were closed across the country except for cases of emergency care. To reopen, dental offices invested in renovations to isolate patients from each other, new ventilation and air-scrubbing technologies, and increased personal protective equipment.
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