For the 14th year, Align Technology is helping America’s ToothFairy, a US non-profit organisation for educational programmes on dental health, by supporting the latter’s Health Education Resources and Outreach (HERO) programme in teaching millions of children oral health, such as the causes of dental disease, or how they can prevent tooth decay.
America’s ToothFairy estimates that at least 831,000 children and nearly 323,000 caregivers were reached through the programme and by their programme members between 1 Jul 2020 and 30 Jun 2021.
Besides providing printed materials to its programme members, the HERO programme provides a variety of resources for dental professionals and community volunteers to engage their neighbours in learning about the importance of oral health.
For instance, America’s ToothFairy website provides educational materials; 218 ToothFairy 101 Community Education Kits were distributed in 2021 to organisations and individuals who can reach at least 250 children each year; 57 Protect Your Smile resource kits with printed materials were distributed with additional support from the Cleveland Smile Centre, Pro2 Solutions, Patterson Dental, and Delta Dental of North Carolina; and thousands of children have participated in the HERO Challenge, a virtual educational campaign.
“We started our FY2021 in the middle of the COVID shutdowns, when many of our programme members couldn’t see patients,” noted Jill Malmgren, executive director of America’s ToothFairy. “Oral health education has always been a main component of our mission, but the restrictions imposed by the pandemic made education that much more important to prevent dental disease. We are exceedingly grateful for Align’s support, which helped us face these challenges to reach more kids.”
Julie Paulsen, vice-president of corporate social responsibility at Align Technology and America’s ToothFairy board secretary, concluded: “We are proud to support an organisation that is helping families in underserved communities learn about oral health and the best ways to maintain a healthy smile. We are delighted to sponsor the HERO programme and support the efforts of America’s ToothFairy, whose vision is closely tied to Align’s purpose – to transform smiles and change lives.”
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