CHILDREN’S DENTISTRY
Some children under 18 are eligible under the Child Dental Benefit Scheme through Medicare, where their dental treatment is covered for up to $1013 for a 2 calendar year period. The fees are set by Medicare and is lower than our fees. However, we just bulk bill this treatment. If you receive Family Payments Tax Benefit A from Centrelink, then you may be eligible. Our receptionist can check eligibility and available balance online.
This covers general dental treatment but not all treatment, such as orthodontics, which is not covered. The dentist/ OHT can let you know which is covered.
The importance of baby teeth is often misunderstood. Not only do baby teeth ‘hold’ the space for adult teeth, guiding our permanent teeth into the correct position in the mouth, early loss of any tooth can lead to huge problems, such as space loss, crowding, tipping and tilting of teeth etc
Baby teeth may need the exact same treatment modalities as adult teeth, be that regular check-ups, cleans, fillings, extractions etc but on a much smaller and wrigglier scale!
The Australian Dental Association recommends that your child’s first dental visit be at one year old. This may be only a quick check on Mum or Dad’s lap to screen for early childhood caries.
Your dentist/OHT will discuss the crucial importance of good dental hygiene and give diet advice to help you maintain your child’s teeth into his/her adult years. Many patients are surprised to find that the first ‘adult’ tooth actually appears at 6 years old!
Bearing all this in mind, we must also be mindful of making your child’s first and subsequent dental visits a positive and happy experience. You will be referred to a paediatric dentist, if your dentist/ OHT feels that your child cannot tolerate dental treatment in our clinics due to:
- young age or difficulty in co-operating due to anxiety
- multiple fillings, extractions and extensive appointments needed
In some cases your child’s first dental treatment may be under a general anaesthesia and with time we aim to have regular dental appointments with your local dentist.