Michael Ferguson,Minister for Health
King and Flinders Island residents will have boosted public dental services when the Tasmanian Royal Flying Doctor Service triples its dental services through clinical hours and patient procedures.
From July 2019, the RFDS will provide dental services to eligible adult dental patients located on King Island, and from September 2019, will begin providing dental services to eligible adult and child dental patients on Flinders Island.
The Government’s Oral Health Services Tasmania (OHST) will continue to manage child patients on King Island.
The collaboration on Flinders and King Islands will also enable OHST’s clinical capacity to increase, with staffing resources reallocated to Launceston and Devonport, enabling clinicians to maintain a higher patient load due to increase clinical time with reduced travel.
As well as dental services on the islands, OHST and the RFDS are working on improving access to dental services for Tasmanians in other rural areas, such as in the Smithton, Scottsdale and Swansea regions.
Dental health and oral hygiene are so important and will reduce sickness and disease later in life.
That’s why the Hodgman Liberal Government will continue working with health professionals and the community to deliver important health initiatives like this one, to make Tasmanians’ lives better.
The new partnership deal between OHST and RFDS will also provide dental care, advice, education and preventive health information for children and adults.
We know providing children with the best possible start in life, including access to education and healthcare, will help set them up for a bright future.
