The Southern District Health Board’s (SDHB) Wanaka oral health clinic may have experienced some COVID-19 related bumps in the road, but it isn’t going anywhere, the Southern District Health Board (SDHB) has confirmed.

The region-wide Community Oral Health Service provides free dental services to children from birth through to Year 8.

Parents had raised concerns earlier this month after experiencing delays to appointments and learning that a local dental therapist had resigned, but the SDHB says the Wanaka clinic continues to run - although recall time between appointments might be extended.

“The oral health of the children in the Southern community is the highest priority of the Southern DHB Community Oral Health Service,” SDHB dental public health specialist Tim Mackay told the Wanaka App. 

The local staff member who resigned will be replaced and a temporary replacement will start next week.

“The Community Oral Health Clinic in Wanaka is open with limited clinical coverage, and from Monday 22 June a therapist is travelling from Dunedin for three to four weeks, or until our new therapist starts,” Tim said.

However, having to hit the pause button on the service because of COVID-19 has created some delays.

Under alert levels four and three, only emergency dentistry could be conducted, therefore the SDHB clinic in Wanaka, and all other community clinics, were closed during this period.

“We have now resumed our community oral health clinics, but the lockdown may impact on the timing for patient recall in communities,” Tim said.

“As oral health professionals, we will be prioritising our most at-risk communities, based on the amount of disease and severity. This will mean for the communities with the best oral health, patients who would previously have been recalled after 12 months, may now be recalled after 18 months,” Tim said.

“Wanaka has a high standard of oral health, so the recall time for patients there is likely to be extended as we catch up after COVID-19.”

Responding to concerns about long wait times between appointments, Tim said there were two patients in Wanaka who were overdue for their checkup by more than 12 months, but the majority were currently six to 11 months overdue.

PHOTO: Supplied