"In an effort to help provide better care for children's teeth at an earlier age, Group Health Cooperative, Washington Dental Service and Washington Dental Service Foundation have launched a pilot program to integrate dental disease prevention into children's doctor's visits. "

"Because pediatricians and family physicians see babies and toddlers in their offices even before their first teeth begin to burst through, incorporating dental care into those early visits could help prevent oral problems down the line, doctors say."

"The three-year pilot program is focused on children ages 6 months to 3 years old, before many parents think their child needs to see a dentist. The goal is to get parents to have the first dental screening by the child's first birthday. Another goal is to make early oral health care a common practice during doctor visits."

""Anecdotally, this has been very effective from my experience," said Dr. David Branch, a Seattle dentist. "I think this will change the standard of care." "

"Beginning this week, some Group Health physicians and their staff will be trained by Washington Dental Service Foundation to spot signs of decay in their young patients and learn what to tell parents about good oral health habits. If physicians have concerns, they will refer patients to area dentists. "

"Earlier this week, a group of physicians got some hands-on experience on how to apply fluoride varnish to a child's teeth, which usually should be done for the first time when a child is 6 months old. While watching their colleagues attempt to brush the fluoride on the teeth of squirming, sometimes screaming, children at Group Health's Rainier Medical Center, some wondered how practical it is to add dental care, even if it's just a glance inside the mouth for decay, to an already time-crunched doctor's visit."

"Dr. David Grossman, medical director for preventive care at Group Health, said it has been proved that cavities can start early and early visits and fluoride varnish helps. "

""This will take time to get right and have it become routine," Grossman said. "This has great promise.""

"One place where early dental intervention already has been seen to be effective is at Odessa Brown Children's Clinic in Seattle's Central District."

"Though not part of the pilot program, for the past six years children at the clinic have received dental care during medical visits. "

""A child will see a physician at least six times during their first year of life, and it affords a lot of opportunities for them to look at developing teeth," said Christopher Delecki, the clinic's dental director. "This fits right into the medical model.""

"He said the biggest advantage is that physicians refer children to him sooner, much like when they refer a child with chronic ear infections to a specialist."

"Washington Dental Service, a Seattle non-profit with 2,200 dentists statewide and $750 million in annual revenue, will cover the costs of the preventive service for its eligible subscribers who also are Group Health members. During the pilot, Washington Dental Service Foundation will pay for the service to be delivered to all other Group Health members not already covered by Medicaid in the pilot locations. "

"In April, Washington Dental Service
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