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Dental and oral health is one of the health problems that often occurs in Indonesia, both in adults and children. Unknowingly, the prevalence of dental and oral health problems at an early age in Indonesia is at a fairly heartbreaking figure. This is based on data from the Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) in 2018, which showed that 81.1% of children aged 3-4 years in Indonesia had tooth decay. In addition, based on the 2018 Riskesdas data, it was also found that 93% of early childhood children in Indonesia had cavities.

Seeing this problem, 9 undergraduate students of the Medical Study Program, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Sebelas Maret (FK UNS) who are members of the Community Service Lecture (KKN) 312 Systofodis team in Kedungwaduk Village, Karangmalang District, Sragen Regency, Central Java held an activity "Oral Health Counseling and 21-Day Intervention Training for 'SENYUM' Cards for parents with toddlers. The activity, which was held on Saturday, July 13, 2024 at the Kedungwaduk Village Hall, aims to detect and overcome dental and oral health problems in early childhood.

The “SENYUM” card is a health promotion media designed by a group of FK UNS lecturers, namely: drg. Betty Saptiwi; Prof. Dr. H. Achmad Arman Subijanto, dr., M.S.; Dr. Risya Cilmiaty A.R., drg., M.Si., Sp.KG.; and Dr. Sumardiyono, SKM., M.Kes. The promotion media is in the form of a picture card containing a checklist for monitoring dental and oral health maintenance in toddlers. “SENYUM” is an abbreviation of several instructions for dental and oral health maintenance actions.

The activity started at 09.00-13.00 WIB and was attended by 24 parents and their toddlers. The activity was opened with a speech by Priyadi, S.Pd, M.Pd as the Head of Kedungwaduk Village. The education and training activities brought in resource persons drg. Betty Saptiwi. The activity ended with a screening examination of caries and dental plaque by presenting an Internship dentist from UNS Hospital. The KKN students also participated in the examination with the assistance of an Internship doctor.

This event received a positive response from the community. One of them was a thank you from a mother named Mrs. Fitri on her Instagram Story:

"Thank you to @kknkedungwaduk UNS who has applied theoretical knowledge to the field, hopefully it will be useful for all of us. Alhamdulillah, his teeth got a thumbs up from the doctor and to continue brushing his teeth," wrote Mrs. Fitri.

After conducting counseling on the meaning of the smile card, the implementation of the 21-day smile card was also carried out. The 312 Systofodis KKN Team distributed smile cards to 24 mothers on the same day and then reminded them to fill out the smile cards every week. Then, on August 5, 2024, an evaluation event for the implementation of the smile card was held. At the event, the team members again emphasized important points along with more detailed explanations accompanied by a quiz with prizes. At the end of the event, there was also an appreciation for 3 mothers with the best smile card filling. With this activity, it is hoped that the program from the FK UNS Kedungwaduk KKN Team can increase awareness of residents in Kedungwaduk Village about the importance of maintaining oral health in order to reduce the risk of caries, plaque, and other oral diseases.

 

Public Relation of FK UNS