New dental therapy program hopes to address needs in rural and remote communities

The new program means the Prince Albert Campus Dental Clinic, which is undergoing renovations, will soon be open for patients. The campus clinic closed last summer as preparations were starting for the new Dental Therapy program.

It won’t just be Prince Albert benefitting from the new program as students are also taking part through partnerships with Northlands College in La Ronge, Saskatchewan Polytechnic and the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority (NITHA).

Siqueira said having these partnerships ensures residents of rural and remote communities in northern Saskatchewan can have better access to dental care.

“This program will support the population in northern Saskatchewan and the Indigenous population and also to support the population of Canada in rural and remote areas,” he said. “We are receiving a lot of positive feedback not just from the people of Saskatchewan but from other provinces and the territories.”

The program will also focus on recruiting Indigenous students and the use of a laddering model to develop a career path for dental aides and dental assistants.

“NITHA is excited this program is coming to fruition. A program to address the oral health needs throughout NITHA continues to be a top priority for our Board of Chiefs,” said NITHA Executive Director Tara Campbell. “Our leadership has been advocating for a program since the closure of the National School of Dental Therapy; Growing capacity in dental therapy is central to improving Indigenous oral health, not only in Saskatchewan but, across the country.”

NITHA will contribute a cultural competency component to the curriculum development that will help ensure graduates are suited to work in Indigenous communities.

According to Statistics Canada, roughly 74 per cent of Canadians visit the dentist in an average year. About seven million Canadians did not visit the dentist due to costs and little to no insurance coverage.

That prompted the Canada Dental Benefit to launch last year, where eligible families can receive up to $650 per child for dental care.

However, it’s not only the costs that are concerning but the availability of dentists and dental therapists in Saskatchewan. While major centres like Saskatoon, Regina, and Prince Albert have plenty of dental offices, the same can’t be said for communities in the North.

In 2021, the Saskatchewan Oral Health Coalition published a report on the state of dental care in the province using data from the Saskatchewan Health Authority.

The report showed that only two dentists are practicing in the Far North Central region, serving a population of over 2,600 people. There were no dental therapists registered in that region.

A graph from the Saskatchewan Oral Health Coalition showing the number of dentist in northern Saskatchewan regions. (SaskOHC.com)

A map showing the number of dental therapists in Saskatchewan (SaskOHC.com)

Siqueira is hopeful this new program will help improve those numbers and provide more access to dental care in northern Saskatchewan. He added with more families accessing the Canada Dental Benefit, careers in dentistry will be in high demand.

“We need more dentists, we need more dental assistants, more dental therapists and more dental hygienists,” he said.

In 1987 the dental therapy program delivered through the former Wascana Institute closed, and the National School of Dental Therapy closed in 2011, ceasing all dental therapy education in Canada. The effects continue to be felt by remote communities in Saskatchewan and across the country where dental therapists traditionally worked.

Including the University of Saskatchewan, there are only 10 dental schools in all of Canada.

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panews@pattisonmedia.com

@princealbertnow

by paNOW Staff

New dental therapy program hopes to address needs in rural and remote communities

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