Ninety patients in one day –
all of them under 5 feet tall – is starting to become
routine for Dr. Steve Gustafson, who, along with his wife
and partner Dr. Shari Morningstar, made the most of
February – Child Dental Health Care Month.
“The
biggest thing we did was dental screening exams for more
than 90 kids who came to the new Boys and Girls Club on
Feb. 6,” Dr. Gustafson said. “It’s part of a nationwide
program offered by Crest. We get to examine the kids who
might not ordinarily come in to see a dentist and in that
setting, they see it’s not such a bad thing.”
Dr. Gustafson said it’s
just a visual examination, but that can reveal a lot. “We
give the reports to the parents with our recommendations,
and Crest supplies us with battery powered toothbrushes –
the brush spins, the battery can be replaced and the
handles come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, from race
cars to dolls.”
The
program is part of a $3 million partnership between Boys
and Girls Clubs nationwide and Crest. The club had posters
up in the lobby for a week prior to the event so kids
would be motivated to sign up.
“The club is also a great
place for the kids to wait their turn,” Dr. Gustafson
said. “They can play pool or foosball and still hear their
name called when we’re ready for them.”
A week later, Drs.
Gustafson and Morningstar participated in The South
Oakland YMCA’s Open House by donating about 200 Crest
Dental Care Packages the Y could give away to children who
had never before been inside the building. “Your generous
gift … was a great hit with the open house participants.
With the help of you and your practice, we attracted over
130 people to the event resulting in 24 new YMCA members,”
wrote Dan Keller, sales and marketing director. “This was
our most successful open house since my arrival in January
of 2000.”
Dr. Morningstar batted
clean-up for the health care month by talking to 50
kindergarteners at Northwood Elementary one morning and
another 25 in the afternoon. They were students in Kendra
Bath’s class.
“We talked about who has
been to the office, what was good and bad for teeth, I
brought the Happy Tooth and Sad Tooth bags of food and I
showed them how to brush their teeth in a circular
movement,” Dr. Morningstar said.
While Dr. Gustafson is very
busy with his practice, he and Dr. Morningstar find time
to take continuing education classes to stay up on the
latest techniques, and in turn try to find time to talk to
community groups about these techniques. If you would like
Dr. Gustafson to talk to your group, please call (248)
541-8770.
