Jacquie Biggar OHT

It’s dementia action week and September is world Alzheimer’s month.

The onset of Alzheimer’s is so gradual that it is impossible to pinpoint when the decline begins.
Ten common symptoms include:
1. Memory loss
2. Repetitive speech
3. Cognitive impairments
4. Slowed routine tasks
5. Confusion and disorientation
6. Visual perception issues
7. Displacement of items
8. Judgement impairment
9. Motivation and initiative
10. Mood and personality changes

It’s important as clinicians to care for people suffering from dementia as my lived experience is seeing rapid decline in their oral health.. I want to say it’s almost linear with their neural decline.

Biggest piece of advice working with dementia patients…. LISTEN WITH YOUR EYES 👀

72% of Australians reported an elevated level of distress in the latest June data.

Recently completing my Mental Health First Aid training I know how important today is and how important it is to ask R U OK everyday…. Because life happens everyday.

☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽

👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽👊🏽

Celebrating Dental Health Week with this year’s theme, “Let’s Talk About Gums!” This week it was a privilege to collaborate with University of Sydney oral health academics and oral health students, promoting the importance of gum health inside Westmeads Health Precinct.

I also had the joy of engaging with children at a local childcare center, teaching the preschoolers about the significance of healthy gums and early oral hygiene using Colgate-Palmolive bright smiles, bright futures oral health promotion resources.

Together, we’re fostering healthier smiles and spreading awareness about the often-overlooked foundation of oral health—our gums!

Today is Aged Care Employee Day!
To celebrate the work and effort of aged care workers in supporting older Australians.
Approximately 370,000 aged care workers are employed in Australian aged care facilities, home care and the Commonwealth Home Support Programme. 
Thank you from Senior Dental Care!

This is why I do what I do

This gentlemen has such a beautiful personality. He is kind, wise and funny but sadly a little less independent than his younger years. He needs more time to communicate and prefers to brush his teeth himself with no assistance.

Transitioning from independence to needing assistance must be so hard. It’s such a temperamental subject to discuss with patients. But one that is required.

I start with a conversation that indicates the importance of why help is needed and gently recommend we start integrating it into the daily care plan. I feel like an agreement between you both is the most important thing to get things off the ground.

This gentleman and i made a deal that the care staff will assist in brushing once a day and he can brush once independently.

This way we can manage, monitor and increase help as required.

Patient management isn’t a ‘gold standard’ measure…. it’s best practice :)

This is why I do what I do

This gentlemen has such a beautiful personality. He is kind, wise and funny but sadly a little less independent than his younger years. He needs more time to communicate and prefers to brush his teeth himself with no assistance.

Transitioning from independence to needing assistance must be so hard. It’s such a temperamental subject to discuss with patients. But one that is required.

I start with a conversation that indicates the importance of why help is needed and gently recommend we start integrating it into the daily care plan. I feel like an agreement between you both is the most important thing to get things off the ground.

This gentleman and i made a deal that the care staff will assist in brushing once a day and he can brush once independently.

This way we can manage, monitor and increase help as required.

Oral health is not a luxury

For our senior population it is SO important, not only for daily cleaning and maintenance but for regular professional dental visits. As we age our disease risk increases and therefore those visits are more important than ever.

SENIOR DENTAL BENEFITS SCHEME would be ideal to ensure our loved ones have the care and professional advice needed to keep their mouth healthy and happy!

🦷Inter🦷 proximal 🦷cleaning 🦷
As our gums recede it opens up the gaps in between our teeth creating more space for bacteria to collect and food to trap!
This is a huge problem as it elevates the patients risk of decay, sensitivity, halitosis and many more conditions.. BUT it can be easily solved by using the correct size inter proximal brush to clean these areas effectively.
What to look for:
Soft bristles, easy to use handles

👀 Spotting the difference here is pretty obvious yeah???

Lots of the time teeth and gums can’t be seen clearly… therefore they’re are forgotten or neglected.
It is so important to know oral health rapidly declines when good practices aren’t in place.

Offer to lip of your elderly loved one and see if they need help with their oral health. 🦷 ✨

This is a facility I have been visiting for some time. It’s nice to be able make connections with long standing patients and their families as well as training staff around oral health products and good oral health practices! Thanks Clover Lea! 🙌🏽