She said tooth decay was a public health problem that needed optimum collaboration from all stakeholders to tackle it. Madam Appiah was speaking at the launch of the “Brush in 123 Minutes” Project, targeted at improving oral hygiene and lifelong dental practices in primary school children in the Volta Region.

She said the project would teach children between the ages of six and 10 how to practice good oral hygiene. It would also produce ‘local champions’ who would be engaged in healthy oral practice competition. Madam Appiah said a recent study by NDANU in 2015 showed that pupils in public schools had little knowledge on oral hygiene and practices than pupils in private schools.

Another study by BEAGLEHOLE reports that in Ghana one dentist must serve an average of 234,780 patients to ensure equity in care delivery.  The project is said to be an evidence-based intervention formulated on best practices gathered from dental awareness campaigns from different parts of the world.