Sask Polytech’s Health and Wellness Day free services aim to reduce barriers for Regina non-profit clients
150 students, faculty and professionals volunteered to provide access to quality dental
and health services
Students and volunteers came together at the Saskatchewan Polytechnic dental clinic
at Regina campus on April 12 to provide quality health care to 92 clients from Regina
non-profit organizations including Family Service Regina, Pine Lodge Addiction Recovery,
Regina Open Door Society, SEARCH Health Clinic, Ukrainian Canadian Congress and transitional
housing services. Volunteers and students completed $67,712 worth of dentistry work.
Over 150 dentists, dental therapists, denturists, dental assistants, dental hygienists
and Sask Polytech students, faculty and staff volunteered their expertise and time.
Clients came in prior to Health and Wellness Day for screenings and exams, this allowed
volunteers to focus on treatment plans and providing free oral health care on April
12. Since 2012, Sask Polytech faculty, students and community volunteers have been
offering free services to Regina clients during Health and Wellness Day.
“Health and Wellness Day unites a dedicated community of students and volunteers to
deliver essential dental and health care to those in need,” says Robin McKay Ganshorn,
clinical coordinator and instructor for Sask Polytech’s dental programs. “This initiative
offers Sask Polytech students an invaluable learning experience. This event brings
together students from our Dental Hygiene, Dental Assisting and Dental Therapy programs. It is amazing to watch them all work together towards a common goal.”
Dental professionals and dental students provided oral exams, restorations, routine
extractions, hygiene care and education.
Janelle Haye, Bryn Antonson, and Brooklynn Vanneste, third-year Dental Hygiene students, helped organize Health and Wellness Day. They coordinated operators, assisted
in finding clients and managed the event logistics. Additionally, they organized fundraisers
to support client transportation to and from the Regina campus dental clinic.
“Each year we host a burger night fundraiser, this year we hosted extra burger nights
and bake sales to raise money to pay for Ubers to help our clients out,” says Antonson.
“Some money also helps pay for goodie bags to say thank you to all the operators and
volunteers.”
“We have all helped with Health and Wellness Day over the past two years. In my first
year I worked directly with a dentist, helping chairside with procedures for three
patients. It was a great learning opportunity and my first time assisting a dentist
while a student at Sask Polytech,” says Haye.
Vanneste adds, “This year we reached out to some new groups to connect with people
who haven’t had dental treatment in while. Many of them wouldn’t have had treatment
if we didn’t find them during our needs assessment. This event helps break down barriers
to dental care and treatment.”
Hands-on learning in the dental clinic and at Health and Wellness Day enables our
students to integrate classroom learning with real-world practice. Under the supervision
of licensed dentists and dental hygienists, students get first-hand experience in
providing comprehensive dental and hygiene care.
The success of Health and Wellness Day is made possible by the generosity and financial
support of our sponsors. A heartfelt thank you to our gold sponsors: dentalcorp and
Henry Schein Dental; silver sponsor: Conexus Credit Union; nutritional sponsor: 123Dentist;
and gift-in-kind sponsors: Dentsply Sirona, Rybchuk’s Catering Company, Ukrainian
Co-op, Sherwood Co-op and Oral Science Creating Synergies. Gold, silver and nutritional
sponsors help cover the costs of supplies used in delivering care and subsidize any
further treatment that may be needed. In-kind sponsors provide oral care supplies,
dental equipment, food and refreshments for our volunteers.
The Sask Polytech dental clinic is located at Regina campus, 4500 Wascana Parkway,
5th Floor. Appointments can be scheduled by calling 306-775-7531. Sask Polytech’s
dental clinic is open to the public and available for appointments to clients of all
ages. To learn more about the clinic and the services provided visit saskpolytech.ca/dentalclinic.
Sponsors
Gold
Nutritional
Saskatchewan Polytechnic is signatory to the SDG Accord. Sustainable Development Goal alignment is one of the ways Sask Polytech is leading the rise of polytechnic education.
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