Oral Health Linked To Major Diseases
By Azaraimy

Bandar Seri Begawan - Director General of Medical Services, Dr Hj Affendy b POSKSMDSP Hj Abidin, said that the high prevalence of diabetes and coronary artery disease in Brunei makes it even more important for us to place a premium on good oral health.

He was speaking at the opening of a symposium on dental and public health/ oral health promotion at the IPA yesterday attended by dental practitioners, dental officers and nurses as well as dental surgery assistants.

Also in attendance was the CEO of the Department of Dental Services Hjh Norsiah bte Hj Johari. The guest speaker during the symposium was Professor Anthony Blinkhorn from the United Kingdom.

In his opening speech, Dr Affendy applauded the many recent efforts of the Oral Health Promotion Division in implementing new oral health promotion initiatives to increase oral health awareness in the community such as the oral health promotion muzakarah with all Penghulus, Ketua kampongs and school teachers from Brunei-Muara and Tutong District and the Oral health Promotion Kampong Angkat pilot project in Kg Pintu Malim.

Dr Affendy said that the studies highlighting the association of poor oral health as risk factors for systematic diseases such as coronary artery diseases and diabetes makes it important for oral healthcare authorities to step up preventive measures in order to improve the oral health of the people.

As frontline healthcare personnel, he asked oral health personnel to help Bruneians to change their lifestyles and cut down risk factors that can contribute to these debilitating diseases. This calls for an urgent need for all oral healthcare personnel to put oral health promotion and oral disease prevention strategies as priorities in our oral health/ agenda and to step up vigorously the planning, implementation and evaluation of such programme for the community as well as for the individual patient.

"Knowing that dental disease is a disease of lifestyle and is multi-factorial in nature, it will be more effective if planning and implementation of oral health promotion programmes take into consideration the socio-economic and health belief cultures practised by the Brunei community as a whole which may differ from other countries and also the differing,’ culture' amongst different people groups in the same country," he added.

On this note, he said, it is therefore important that oral health promotion programmes must have multi-pronged strategies which are evidence based and be implemented in collaboration with many stakeholders such as the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Mministry of Finance, Ministry of Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, community leaders, NGOs etc. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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