A new initiative to support better treatment pathways for Southlanders needing dental care is going to have a regular clinic at Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) which will be offered at the main Invercargill campus from this week.
Map My Mouth is the brainchild of Invercargill born-and-bred Georgina Welsh, an Oral Health Therapist who had a vision to take some of the pressure off the dental system in Southland by offering a service conducting dental checks at a discounted rate of $80 for SIT students and staff.
“I came up with the idea around three years ago when I saw how hard it was for people to get into dentists. It’s kind of evolved from there,” she said. Her lightbulb moment came at the Electrify Conference in Christchurch, an event for women founders, start-up leaders, supporters and investors. “I got the idea from Mole Map, but for teeth.” This provided the impetus to begin Map My Mouth. Admitting it can be hard to do a start-up or a side hustle while working full-time, Ms Welsh, who works in a private dental practice, has funded the project herself. “It’s been a few years in the making [and] a really good learning curve; good for growing my mind in a different way.” She still works part-time three days a week and will dedicate two days per week for Map My Mouth.
Acknowledging there was pressure on dental services in Southland and increasing wait times to see a dentist, Ms Welsh said by creating referral pathways for people to get treatment, it would be a better utilisation of the resources available as well as save time for the patient and the dental service. “The mouth is so important. It’s the gateway to your body… it’s so important for your smile, for eating,” she says enthusiastically. “Part of what I’m wanting to do is education (about dental health) so that people save money in the long run.” Ms Welsh will carry out dental assessments, x-rays, an intraoral scanner and cancer check, then advise the next steps in the patient’s treatment.
Ms Welsh tested the waters earlier this year at SIT’s O-Week Market Day, to gauge the level of interest for Map My Mouth. As well as the success of her display, importantly, she networked with likeminded people. “I’m so thankful for the opportunity to be at O-Week, I was able to connect with other Southland organisations; I was blown away by everyone’s support and encouragement.”
Encouraged by a friend, Ms Welsh approached SIT to suggest she could trial the new concept on campus. “I thought being onsite would be a real bonus for the SIT community.” And SIT Management agreed. Oscar Jenkins, SIT Financial Officer, said when they were contacted by Ms Welsh, they were onboard immediately, and could see the benefit to staff and students. “There’s value [in this] to our large SIT community… It’s that first layer of checking to identify what dental care plan or treatment that person might need,” he said. The service will be based on demand and would start with an afternoon once a fortnight.
“We would like to welcome Georgina to SIT, we look forward to Map My Mouth supporting the health and wellbeing of the SIT community,” Mr Jenkins stated.
Ready to see her first patients soon, Ms Welsh felt a mix of excitement and nervousness, hoping she had sufficiently prepared, at the same time admitting she’d been busy practising on family and friends. With a vision to see Map My Mouth expand, Ms Welsh is already thinking about providing night sessions and going into Invercargill businesses to offer dental checks. “The end goal is for the Ministry (of Health) to roll it out nationwide. It could change the system,” she explained. “If it’s able to address the people that need treatment and take some of the pressure off, that would be awesome.”
Map My Mouth will be in the former St John’s Sunday School Hall, by J Block - SIT’s Centre for Creative Industries, Esk Street, from 1.00pm this Wednesday 16th April.
Students and staff will be able to register their interest via www.mapmymouth.co.nz, hello@mapmymouth.com or the direct booking link Carepatron