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2008 Give Kids A Smile
School Nurse Information
Thank you to all of our volunteer school nurses who have agreed to help in the identification and registration of underserved local children in need of dental care.
“Give Kids a Smile” (GKAS) is an annual event created by the American Dental Association. It is held each year in conjunction with the national “Children’s Dental Health Month” in February. GKAS is administered locally through the oversight of constituent dental societies of the ADA. The North Texas Dental Society (Texas 4th district) covers nine counties in North Texas, including Collin, Cooke, Denton, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman, Rains, and Rockwall.
Our goal in 2008 is to reach out to qualified children in the communities of Allen, Celina, Denison, Denton, Frisco, Flower Mound, Lewisville, McKinney, Plano, Princeton, Prosper, Rockwall, and Sherman. We hope to care for as many as 300 children throughout our district. It is an ambitious undertaking, but one we believe is worthwhile and doable.
We believe that one of the best resources available to identify children suffering from poor dental health and unable to afford needed care is through our local schools. And who better for this purpose than you, our school nurses? We are providing these guidelines to assist you in determining which students qualify and how to register them for the GKAS event in 2008.
Selection criteria should include the following:
(1) Eligible children must be between 4-12 years of age;
(2) Eligible children must be enrolled in one of the above-mentioned
school districts and have good attendance;
(3) Eligible children must demonstrate an inability to receive regular dental care due to financial limitations (such as parental unemployment; no dental insurance and/or parental income below poverty line; or
qualification for government aid, such as Medicaid, Head Start, and school lunch programs).
Good indicators of potential need would be those children who have never been to the dentist before; those who have obvious dental problems which are not being addressed; those who have been sent to the school nurse’s office with a dental complaint; or, those who have missed school due to pain/illness from untreated dental problems.
Once identified, use the “School Nurse Assessment Form” to further determine the child’s suitability for the GKAS event. Based upon your selection, please send the “GKAS Parent Letter for Kids” to the parents of each child you have chosen. If the parents decide to enroll their children in the program, the GKAS Committee will need to have them fill out and provide a completed "Patient Registration/Health History Form".
It must have a signature at the bottom for disclosure and consent to treat. Children with incomplete forms will not be eligible to participate in the 2008 event.
Please return the two forms to the GKAS committee as soon as possible.
Please be advised that many dental offices are not equipped to provide English/Spanish translators for Spanish-only speaking patients and parents. They must bring an adult translator with them to their dental appointments. It is essential that the volunteer doctors and their staffs be able to communicate effectively with the patients and their parents.
Patient Registration/Health History Form
GKAS Parent Letter for Kids (English Version)
GKAS Parent Letter for kids (Spanish Version)
GKAS 2008 Dear Parent - CCCC Hygiene School (English Version)
GKAS 2008 Dear Parent CCCC Hygiene School - (Spanish Version)
If you have any questions or need help in registering student-patients, please contact Lisa McLerran at 214-708-6919. Email inquiries may be directed to gkas_1@yahoo.com.
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and the Contact Nurse:
Donna Grubbs
Denison ISD
Kathryn Rapier, RN
Allen ISD
Denise Gilmore
Celina ISD
Theresa Grant
Denton ISD
Ellen Fogle, RN
Frisco ISD
Stephanie Gage
Lewisville/Flower Mound ISD
Julie Blakenship
McKinney ISD
Fran Petroff
Plano ISD
Linda Hill
Princeton ISD
Susan Williams
Prosper ISD
Nancy Smith, RN
Rockwall ISD
Stacy Evans
Sherman ISD
