Are FIFO workers the root cause of CQ town's dental woes?
A FOCUS on total dental and oral hygiene and a more community based approach have been identified as vital for the Isaac Region by new dental practitioner, Dr Hany Aziz.
Dr Hany has been undertaking patient fact finding in the region ahead of the opening of the new DentalCareXtra practice and says the region faces some real issues.
He says that anecdotal information gathered from the community has revealed some startling and urgent issues.
"For starters, the community is paying a double price at present," Dr Hany says.
"The transient nature of the community and the influx of fly-in, fly-out workers have meant that, in the past, there's had to be a strong focus on emergency work, as priority.
"This in turn has pushed out and delayed family and community needs.
"That is a scenario for disaster as problems grow and develop. The loss of a Dental Practice in Mornabah for many months only made things worse and now we're seeing real problems emerge."
Dr Hany says the relationship between poor oral health and systemic diseases can become a significant issue for the region.
"Poor dental and oral hygiene contributes to cardiovascular diseases, poor glycaemic control in diabetics, low birth weight pre-term babies and a variety of other medical conditions," he says.
Dr Hany believes that the practice will face a challenge when it opens. The construction has begun on site and will be followed by installation of brand new equipment prior to opening in January.
