Free dental clinics in North Carolina: traveling dental service for rural school children during the summer of 1918

              18 FREE DENTAL CLINICS
wished to teach a lesson in oral hy-giene
over the entire county. The
first three weeks our work was en-tirely
rural, only one village of thirty-five
homes was visited. From twenty
to forty miles were driven each day in
a Ford over roads like the traditional
stumpy field plowed by a devout stu-dent
of divinity.
"At one school thirty-three children
from twenty-three households were
given dental treatment.
One little girl presented herself for
"the lifetime vaccination and dental
work." She was more familiar with
the procedure concerning hog cholera
and horses' teeth than the methods
followed in human betterment.
The following little human interest
story, written by a Kinston newspaper
man, has an unmistakable appeal:
"At Moss Mill Tuesday a nine- or
ten-year-old youngster walked man-fully
up to the County Health Depart-ment
workers for dental treatment. A
few months ago the department, ac-cording
to the lad's mother, saved his
life. He was bedridden from the
hookworm disease. Pallid, ailing lit-tle
fellow, he didn't care whether
school kept or not. Now he is taking
everything in the way of examination
and vaccination that the department
has to give him. He is to be immune
against smallpox and typhoid, he is to
have his mouth tuned up to properly
masticate the sustenance that he takes
and protect his stomach from 'poison
gas,' and he is to be re-examined to
make sure that no hookworms are left
from the former treatment. The
change in the lad is pronounced, ac-cording
to Dr. James S. Mitchener,
head of the department. The dentist
with the department, which is now
carrying on a county-wide campaign,
is treating twenty-five person daily.
Some have been turned away at each
place visited."
Treatment
Total number children treated . . 383
Total number cleanings 338
Total number amalgan fillings . . 72
Total number cement fillings .... 55
Total number extractions 104
Miscellaneous 4
Unmanageable children 1
Number schools in county 46
Number schools represented at
the clinic 31
Number households receiving
treatment 232
DAVIDSON COUNTY
In Davidson County the plan of call-ing
the children whom the teachers, in
making the preliminary physical
examination, had found to be most in
need of dental work, was followed.
The parents were notified to bring the
children to a central point at an ap-pointed
hour on a certain day. The
work in each community was com-pleted
before going on to another
place. In most instances the age was
restricted to ten years and under.
Eelangee "Mills Town," Lexington, N. C.
Finest cottonmill town in the world. New
building under construction is "teacherage"
for teachers' home.
One dentist did eight weeks work
straight, doing everything necessary
for each child. A second dentist, be-ginning
later, did four weeks work,
following the method he had in an-other
county of doing only a limited
amount of work for each child.
Because it sets forth so fully and
clearly so many phases of the whole
effort, the report in full of the dentist
doing the eight weeks work in David-son
is herewith given.
"Before beginning the free dental
dispensary I anticipated a great deal
more trouble with the children than I