Following approval by NHS Cheshire and Merseyside, the All Together Smiling supervised toothbrushing programme will be expanded and Mini Mouth Care Matters, rolled out to children’s wards across district general hospitals throughout the region.
Tooth decay remains one of the biggest health challenges facing children and young people. Despite being largely preventable, it continues to be the leading cause of hospital admission among children aged five to nine, affecting their health, wellbeing, confidence, sleep and ability to learn. Mini Mouth Care Matters helps make oral health part of everyday hospital care, supporting ward teams to spot problems early, include mouth care in daily routines and give children, young people and families the advice and support they need.
The national Mini Mouth Care Matters programme, which the team has adapted and delivered at Alder Hey, has already made a significant difference to the children and young people in our care. The team is now sharing its experience with colleagues across the region, helping ensure thousands more children and young people can benefit.
Since its introduction at Alder Hey, the programme has supported more than 4,400 children and young people and provided oral health training to more than 900 healthcare professionals.
Dr Susana Dominguez-Gonzalez, Consultant Orthodontist at Alder Hey said:
“When a child is in hospital, oral health can easily be overlooked, particularly when families have so many other things to think about. Through the programme, we have been working with staff on the hospital wards to make mouth care part of everyday care, helping them identify problems early and giving children, young people and families the advice and support they need. It has been great to see the difference the programme has made at Alder Hey, and we are looking forward to sharing what we have learned with colleagues across the region so that more children and young people can benefit.”
Alongside this, All Together Smiling continues to go from strength to strength. Since launching in April 2024, the programme has reached around 18,400 children across 359 settings and distributed more than 451,000 oral health packs to families across Cheshire and Merseyside.The team is helping tackle oral health inequalities and giving children the best possible start in developing healthy habits that can last a lifetime.
The next phase will see All Together Smiling extend its support to specialist SEND settings, ensuring even more children can benefit from accessible and inclusive oral health support.