31 August 2004
AUT Welcomes Review Of Children’s Oral Health
Auckland University of Technology (AUT) welcomes the announcement of a review of child oral health services by
government and district health boards. AUT is the largest New Zealand provider of degree level dental therapy education
and only provider in the North Island.
Professor Max Abbott, AUT Pro Vice-Chancellor and Faculty of Health Dean, said the country is facing an oral health
crisis that requires a rapid and substantial response to remedy.
“Oral health standards have deteriorated in some Maori and lower socioeconomic communities and could get worse if more
is not done quickly to reverse the trend.”
“Priority needs to be given to boosting the dental therapist workforce. It has reduced from about 900 to 500 and
continues to age and shrink.”
Professor Abbott said AUT and Waitemata District Health Board are working together to turn the workforce crisis around
and are making some progress.
“We established a new dental therapist degree programme in 2002 that will have its first graduates at the end of this
year. This is a start but the numbers are small relative to need. There will be a maximum of 12 new therapists this
year, 15 next year and 20 the year after.”
“We would like to increase student numbers and add a programme on dental hygiene to strengthen preventative work. The
major limiting factor is cost. Government funding for dental therapist education is a fraction of what is provided for
dentists, yet the costs for staff, specialist facilities, equipment and consumables are similar. We are carrying the
funding shortfall because it is in the national interest and anticipate that government will redress it in due course.
However, we cannot sustain let alone increase this cross subsidisation.”
“There are really good career prospects for dental therapists now that they can work in the private sector as well as in
the school dental service. Long-term this should be good for the oral health of New Zealanders. Paradoxically,
short-term, it may draw therapists out of an already depleted school dental service and add to existing recruitment and
retention problems.”
According to Professor Abbott there are other factors that require attention to avert the growing oral health crisis.
This includes enhancing employment conditions for therapists in the public sector, upgrading clinics and clinic
equipment, completing fluoridation of the country’s water supplies and enhancing the nutritional and general health
status of marginalised children and families.
ENDS