2019 Smile Award winners from the Estonian Dental Association are on a mission to improve oral health
FDI is now accepting applications for the FDI Smile Award. The award serves to support and promote preventive oral care at the local level.
About the FDI Smile Award
The award, valued at US$5000, recognizes FDI member national dental associations (NDAs) that are currently implementing innovative and sustainable community outreach projects to improve oral health outcomes in their countries.
The award is given each year to two applicants for their original projects. In 2019, the Palestinian Dental Association and the Estonian Dental Association were each presented with a Smile Award. The Palestinian Dental Association was awarded for its Dental-Point Project, which provides urgently needed oral healthcare to people living in the Moria migrant camp on Lesbos island in Greece. The Estonian Dental Association was awarded for its Suukool/Children’s Dental Health Project, which focuses on oral health education, prevention, and promotion among children and adults.
Profiling the Suukool/Children’s Dental Health Project by the Estonian Dental Association
The Estonian Dental Association was awarded for its Suukool/Children’s Dental Health Project, which focuses on oral health education, prevention, and promotion among children and adults. In Estonia, providing oral health education continues to be a challenge and oral health outcomes continue to be poor. As part of the project, the “Clean Teeth” campaign provides a toothbrushing journal for kindergarten classrooms around the country, encouraging teachers to record each student’s toothbrushing habits in the journal each day.
So far, the campaign has reached close to 12,000 kindergartners. Preliminary results of the initiative indicate that the number of children brushing their teeth twice daily is increasing every month and participating children are enjoying the project. This year, the project will aim to train all kindergarten teachers in Estonia on oral health education and so that all kindergartners will receive oral health lessons on a regular basis.
“The Smile Award has helped parents and caregivers in Estonia to acknowledge where to turn to with children’s dental health prevention questions, remind them of Suukool’s 5 simple golden rules for keeping teeth healthy. We believe Suukool is so cool and it may be an effective way for a cavity free future in Estonia!”
- Kati Vald, Suukool/Children’s Dental Health Project Leader
Application and eligibility requirements
FDI encourages all interested FDI member NDAs to apply. Please consult the FDI Smile Award page for application guidelines and more information on past projects.
Don’t delay – applications are due by 1 February 2020.
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The ‘FDI Smile Award’ serves to promote preventive oral care at local level, awarding FDI Member Associations making a difference in oral health nationally through innovative and sustainable community outreach projects.
