Gracemed Dental Clinic staff will be coming to the school on Friday, Feb. 12 to do our annual state-mandated dental screening. This is an organization based in Wichita that goes out to schools and Kansas and provides free dental services. This year the screening will be conducted for students in grades K through 12th grade, which is different from past years when screening was only done for PreK through 8th grade. Another major difference in this screening is that cleaning, fluoride treatment, and application of sealants will be available to all students in addition to the dental exam. This is possible because there will be up to 5 dental hygienists coming and they will be bring portable dental equipment. ALL OF THESE SERVICES WILL BE PROVIDED AT NO CHARGE TO THE STUDENT.   However,  parents will be asked to provided insurance information if applicable so that Gracemed Dental Clinic may file claims to offset their expenses.  If the claim is denied, parents will not be charged for services.

        As always, any of these services are optional and not mandatory. Forms have been provided to parents among the school staff and mailed out to all other families. Enclosed in the packet of forms is a form giving parents the opportunity to decline any services, including the basic dental visual exam. The other forms include a consent form for additional dental work and a health history form if additional dental work is to be done. Only students who return a parent signed decline form will be excluded from the screening. All other students will be automatically included in the dental screening visual exam only.    FORMS MUST BE RETURNED BY WEDNESDAY, FEB. 10, 2010.

       This is a great opportunity for parents who do not have already have a dentist for their children, for those without dental insurance, and working parents who find it difficult to leave work to take their children to a dentist.   The results of the dental screening will be sent to all parents of students participating.  If parents have any questions, they are welcome to contact the school nurse, Mrs. Jordan, between 9 AM and 2 PM Monday through Friday.