Maryland boy, 12, dies after bacteria from tooth spread to his brain
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Isn't this one of the saddest stories you've ever read? This exemplifies the effects of poverty and ignorance and should never have happened in this country! Sadly, more education on nutrition and hygiene could have helped prevent it.
Blame doesn't solely lie on the "system" and the lack of affordable dental care, but also falls on the child's mother and her probable lack of knowledge of the importance of simple dental hygiene and nutrition. It is a fact that it's cheaper and easier to feed your children junk food than to prepare healthy nutritious meals. More important, however, is that it doesn't cost much to purchase toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss! These children had only had their permanent teeth for what, 4-6 years? Granted, some people have "soft teeth" and are more prone to cavities however I can't help but believe that this degree of decay and infection was largely the long term effect of garbage food and poor dental maintenance.
Rather than bitching about "the system", lack of transportation and nomadic living arrangements, perhaps there should be greater effort to educate people about the resources that are available to them. Use of food stamps should be limited to foods that have nutritional value such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables and not useable for sugary cereals, prepackaged convenience foods and KoolAid. Vouchers should be available from Social Services for hygienic items such as soap, detergents, toothbrushes, floss and toothpaste for those who cannot afford them. Educational programs should be mandated as a condition of receiving government benefits. The costs of these educational programs could be offset by having the instruction and services provided by healthcare students or by offering tax breaks or tuition forebearance in exchange for medical and dental services provided by healthcare professionals.
These simple suggestions could help alleviate the costs of prolonged or extensive medical care that arise from the lack of knowledge/training in self care. Perhaps then the shortcomings of the "system" won't be so deadly.
Blame doesn't solely lie on the "system" and the lack of affordable dental care, but also falls on the child's mother and her probable lack of knowledge of the importance of simple dental hygiene and nutrition. It is a fact that it's cheaper and easier to feed your children junk food than to prepare healthy nutritious meals. More important, however, is that it doesn't cost much to purchase toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss! These children had only had their permanent teeth for what, 4-6 years? Granted, some people have "soft teeth" and are more prone to cavities however I can't help but believe that this degree of decay and infection was largely the long term effect of garbage food and poor dental maintenance.
Rather than bitching about "the system", lack of transportation and nomadic living arrangements, perhaps there should be greater effort to educate people about the resources that are available to them. Use of food stamps should be limited to foods that have nutritional value such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables and not useable for sugary cereals, prepackaged convenience foods and KoolAid. Vouchers should be available from Social Services for hygienic items such as soap, detergents, toothbrushes, floss and toothpaste for those who cannot afford them. Educational programs should be mandated as a condition of receiving government benefits. The costs of these educational programs could be offset by having the instruction and services provided by healthcare students or by offering tax breaks or tuition forebearance in exchange for medical and dental services provided by healthcare professionals.
These simple suggestions could help alleviate the costs of prolonged or extensive medical care that arise from the lack of knowledge/training in self care. Perhaps then the shortcomings of the "system" won't be so deadly.
I treat these kids every day. The ignorance routine only goes so far.
The old saying "you only value what you pay for" really rings true for me. I perform pediatric dentistry in a children's hospital and 95% of the kids are on medicaid. It sounds to me like the mom should have been held accountable. No one can keep up with where you are but yourself. If you're moving around it's your responsibility to let your social worker know where you are at. If you depend on Medicaid it's your responsibility to make sure it stays in effect. I can promise you she knew who to contact to make sure she was still getting a check and food stamps. It's sad that he lost his life on account of his mother.
For some people, they really are ignorant. I'm talking 12 mos old child coming into our clinic with bombed out teeth and his bottle or sippy cup has coke in it.
What is more depressing is what I see often; parents who willingly and knowingly neglect their children. This case fits the bill. People need to take responsibility for this kind of thing. Before that spreads to the brain the kid had an abscess, which then turned into a huge facial swelling called cellulitis. Regardless if they have a dentist or not, they easily could have gone to a hospital ED to get antibiotics in the meantime.
My day today is a sad example of this type of thing. I was in the operating room today doing cases under anesthesia. My first case was a 3 year old. They had already been to the OR at 14 months old! At that time, 4 upper and 2 lower teeth were extracted, probably because that's all that was in the mouth. At 2 years old, we did a conscious sedation in our clinic to repair 3 more teeth. Today, I was 'forced' to put stainless steel crowns on TEN teeth in addition to extracting the only other 2 we weren't keeping. I promise you, this mother has been to our clinic for years and we spend a lot of time on patient/parent education.
My next case was the same thing...a kid who was in the OR 1 year ago and is already back with a ton of work needed. Many of these parents DO know but they dont' care. Maybe if they got thrown in jail for neglect they might start to.
So no, more time with hygiene instruction and education probably wouldn't have helped it. You can't reach over and shake a parent to make them care.
The problem is, they have no incentive to change. No brushing for 2 years, go to sleep for 2 hours and it's all taken care of...FREE of charge. Well, free to them. For me and you, it's our tax dollars.
There is no longer personaly responsibility in our country anymore. It's really sad that this child has died, but it's the fault of his mother and no one else. No sob story about access to care is necessary. Yes, there is indeed an access to care problem in regards to dentistry in our country, but it is NOT the reason this child died.
I know I sound jaded, but it's because I've treated over a thousand of these kids and interact with their families every day of my week. It is one of the most frustrating things, because the kids are so great but they grow up doomed because of their situation. What's even more sad is these fuc.king degenerates ruin it for the good people who are on medicaid because they are truly in need and they value it.
Her other child has 6 badly decayed teeth. How many more before she does something about it?
The old saying "you only value what you pay for" really rings true for me. I perform pediatric dentistry in a children's hospital and 95% of the kids are on medicaid. It sounds to me like the mom should have been held accountable. No one can keep up with where you are but yourself. If you're moving around it's your responsibility to let your social worker know where you are at. If you depend on Medicaid it's your responsibility to make sure it stays in effect. I can promise you she knew who to contact to make sure she was still getting a check and food stamps. It's sad that he lost his life on account of his mother.
For some people, they really are ignorant. I'm talking 12 mos old child coming into our clinic with bombed out teeth and his bottle or sippy cup has coke in it.
What is more depressing is what I see often; parents who willingly and knowingly neglect their children. This case fits the bill. People need to take responsibility for this kind of thing. Before that spreads to the brain the kid had an abscess, which then turned into a huge facial swelling called cellulitis. Regardless if they have a dentist or not, they easily could have gone to a hospital ED to get antibiotics in the meantime.
My day today is a sad example of this type of thing. I was in the operating room today doing cases under anesthesia. My first case was a 3 year old. They had already been to the OR at 14 months old! At that time, 4 upper and 2 lower teeth were extracted, probably because that's all that was in the mouth. At 2 years old, we did a conscious sedation in our clinic to repair 3 more teeth. Today, I was 'forced' to put stainless steel crowns on TEN teeth in addition to extracting the only other 2 we weren't keeping. I promise you, this mother has been to our clinic for years and we spend a lot of time on patient/parent education.
My next case was the same thing...a kid who was in the OR 1 year ago and is already back with a ton of work needed. Many of these parents DO know but they dont' care. Maybe if they got thrown in jail for neglect they might start to.
So no, more time with hygiene instruction and education probably wouldn't have helped it. You can't reach over and shake a parent to make them care.
The problem is, they have no incentive to change. No brushing for 2 years, go to sleep for 2 hours and it's all taken care of...FREE of charge. Well, free to them. For me and you, it's our tax dollars.
There is no longer personaly responsibility in our country anymore. It's really sad that this child has died, but it's the fault of his mother and no one else. No sob story about access to care is necessary. Yes, there is indeed an access to care problem in regards to dentistry in our country, but it is NOT the reason this child died.
I know I sound jaded, but it's because I've treated over a thousand of these kids and interact with their families every day of my week. It is one of the most frustrating things, because the kids are so great but they grow up doomed because of their situation. What's even more sad is these fuc.king degenerates ruin it for the good people who are on medicaid because they are truly in need and they value it.
Her other child has 6 badly decayed teeth. How many more before she does something about it?
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Isn't this one of the saddest stories you've ever read? This exemplifies the effects of poverty and ignorance and should never have happened in this country! Sadly, more education on nutrition and hygiene could have helped prevent it.
Blame doesn't solely lie on the "system" and the lack of affordable dental care, but also falls on the child's mother and her probable lack of knowledge of the importance of simple dental hygiene and nutrition. It is a fact that it's cheaper and easier to feed your children junk food than to prepare healthy nutritious meals. More important, however, is that it doesn't cost much to purchase toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss! These children had only had their permanent teeth for what, 4-6 years? Granted, some people have "soft teeth" and are more prone to cavities however I can't help but believe that this degree of decay and infection was largely the long term effect of garbage food and poor dental maintenance.
Rather than bitching about "the system", lack of transportation and nomadic living arrangements, perhaps there should be greater effort to educate people about the resources that are available to them. Use of food stamps should be limited to foods that have nutritional value such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables and not useable for sugary cereals, prepackaged convenience foods and KoolAid. Vouchers should be available from Social Services for hygienic items such as soap, detergents, toothbrushes, floss and toothpaste for those who cannot afford them. Educational programs should be mandated as a condition of receiving government benefits. The costs of these educational programs could be offset by having the instruction and services provided by healthcare students or by offering tax breaks or tuition forebearance in exchange for medical and dental services provided by healthcare professionals.
These simple suggestions could help alleviate the costs of prolonged or extensive medical care that arise from the lack of knowledge/training in self care. Perhaps then the shortcomings of the "system" won't be so deadly.
It's nice to read something from someone else without the blame mentality.
Unfortunately, it came from you because you're also are on the healthcare side of things and see this stuff daily.
Regarding 'soft teeth', except for pretty limited instances of mineralization disturbances that is a myth. It's sugar, more sugar, and more sugar.
Saint, isn't basic oral care something that is taught in public schools? Maybe I'm showing my age but I remember a dentist visiting my elementary school who handed out toothbrushes and red dye tablets that showed how well or poorly we were brushing. I think those items were even provided to the dentist by Proctor & Gamble or one of the other companies that manufactured toothpaste/toothbrushes.
You're right in that this mom needs to accept responsibility for this tragedy. Having worked as a case manager, I've found that there are many people and organizations who are willing to help others less fortunate if only they are asked.
There are some folks who take an active role in seeking help for their kids. Those parents are the ones who will promise and sacrifice $5 out of their check every month in order to do right by their children. It seems their children are the ones who break free from the bonds of poverty by sheer determination. Sadly, there are far too many parents who sit back and wait for the services to fall into their lap. Then they bitch when it doesn't just, magically, happen! The sad fact is that their children are the ones who usually end up sick, dead or in jail, continuing the excuse that "the system" is to blame. I worked with many adults who were those children 20 years ago and have continued to perpetuate this flawed thinking in their adult lives and instilling it in their own children.
It's a sad state that we are forced to underwrite with our tax dollars. That's why I support mandatory education/participation in parenting programs (with proven results displayed by the children) if one is to receive government benefits in their behalf. Something earned, whether by money, dedication or perseverance, is something to be cherished. This "gimme gimme" crap has to stop!
You're right in that this mom needs to accept responsibility for this tragedy. Having worked as a case manager, I've found that there are many people and organizations who are willing to help others less fortunate if only they are asked.
There are some folks who take an active role in seeking help for their kids. Those parents are the ones who will promise and sacrifice $5 out of their check every month in order to do right by their children. It seems their children are the ones who break free from the bonds of poverty by sheer determination. Sadly, there are far too many parents who sit back and wait for the services to fall into their lap. Then they bitch when it doesn't just, magically, happen! The sad fact is that their children are the ones who usually end up sick, dead or in jail, continuing the excuse that "the system" is to blame. I worked with many adults who were those children 20 years ago and have continued to perpetuate this flawed thinking in their adult lives and instilling it in their own children.
It's a sad state that we are forced to underwrite with our tax dollars. That's why I support mandatory education/participation in parenting programs (with proven results displayed by the children) if one is to receive government benefits in their behalf. Something earned, whether by money, dedication or perseverance, is something to be cherished. This "gimme gimme" crap has to stop!
Alyce,
"Yea, I wanna know what happin?":com:
I will tell you what happened, you let the kid eat whatever he wanted, do whatever he wanted(not brush), because your a fat lazy ass mother who should not have children!:scared ..........
There, I said it for you Saint.........
Fuk her, she should be in jail:nono:
Oh yea, I'm not in the medical/dental field either....
"Yea, I wanna know what happin?":com:
I will tell you what happened, you let the kid eat whatever he wanted, do whatever he wanted(not brush), because your a fat lazy ass mother who should not have children!:scared ..........
There, I said it for you Saint.........
Fuk her, she should be in jail:nono:
Oh yea, I'm not in the medical/dental field either....
What I would pay to be able to say that to some of these deadbeats I see :00hour
