476. Four years of ORAL HEALTH

It is now four full years to publish the Oral Health. Over these four years here have been treated the most widely varying issues related to oral health in Portugal, unfortunately, there is still a lot of work on, because the balance of four years on oral health in Portugal brought little positive to society, and much less for the poor and excluded.

The Oral Health has tried to be always updated, informing its readers about the latest news relating to oral health in our country. Keeping an independent editorial line, the Oral Health has tried to be always on the defense of civil society, never aligning interests by co-operative, did not hand the disastrous policies pursued by various governments and the Directorate - General of Health in this area, and there was a protagonist of big business with large vested interests in the sector.

The Oral Health was guided by the right to indignation and straightforwardness, I was always concerned the rights of citizens enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic.

The constant trampling of the rights enshrined in the Constitution, access to health care, favored policies of the Ministry of Health outputs, sometimes aligned interests within the cooperative sector, coupled with the ineffectiveness of amorphous powers of Parliament and President, allow the systematic violation of demagogic and fundamental human rights, including the Charter of rights of the Child, denying them one of the most basic human rights: access to health care.

In a country where the training of dentists is at the expense of all the Portuguese who work and pay taxes, continue to use schemes that prohibit access to dental care to the majority of the population. The oral health care are now almost exclusively the right of the political positions of the central government and the bourgeoisie, the working class will still have much to fight to get equal rights in this society atrocious output from April 25, 1974.

Shame demagogic exercised by those who want the system remains as it is going to have the company for Oral Health for many more years.

475. Pingo Doce helps treat oral health of residents

The project "the VRSA Smiling" was released by the city of Vila Real de Santo António (VRSA) at the end of last year and to date has funded dental care to 85 people.

From the moment that authority announced a protocol with six clinics in the county and the financing of oral health care to the most needy that the number of subscribers continues to grow. Currently there are about 1500 people waiting to be called.

Not all individuals listed meet the criteria required by the municipality, which were established in the economic conditions of each household. In this sense, the City continues to make the respective social analysis to determine which people are able to integrate the program, says the Mayor of VRSA.

After the protocol signed with the county's six dentists, last week the project received a new lease of life support through the Pingo Doce, which collaborated with EUR 150 000 under social patronage. It is clearly a very important financial boost and a gesture of welcome. We have a budget of 300,000 euros for this year and only with this contribution can fund the project by 50 percent, said Luis Gomes.

However, the mayor acknowledged that the budget needed to finally resolve the problems of oral health of residents has no limits and you can not define, because there are people to sign up continuously.

Helder Jacinto, Pingo Doce, recalled that this is the first supermarket chain that support for the field of dentistry and oral health. Regarding the Chamber of Vila Real de Santo António, one official stated that it is an example to be followed by other municipalities.

JA, Jornal do Algarve

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Here is an example of what should be good practice in relation to sponsorship of initiatives to promote oral health of populations.

Projects in which the promoters of patronage are the same as managing resources and "contract" to show dentists work have no place in the actual promotion of population health, often aimed at schemes of tax evasion and embezzlement.

It is necessary and critical to separate the promoters of the patronage of the entities that manage the resources available; turn to dentists only they are responsible for the implementation of clinical interventions, being duly compensated for their work.

The City Council of Vila Real de Santo António, Pingo Doce and the dentists who participated in this project are to be congratulated, so there are other municipalities in the country to copy this example.

474. The degradation of harmful working conditions of dentists in Portugal

Dentists for Leiria

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This offer is no longer active

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We offer: remuneration compatible with the functions and ensuring project until December 2010, with possibility of renewal. If you have the required profile, please send your CV to:

ssoares@sucesso24horas.com
Net Emprego

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What is the reaction of the Order of Dentists of this subordination of the working conditions imposed by the state, violating the rights enshrined in the Portuguese Constitution?

473. Diário Digital / Lusa interview President of the Order of Dentists (Part 2: Analysis of interview)

The Dental Association considers excessive vacancies available in higher education courses for dentistry in Portugal, justifying the fact that the activity is exercised almost exclusively by the private sector, the ratio of professionals in Portugal is above the European average and age on the current young dentists.

Indeed, two major barriers to the business of dentistry in Portugal is that it is concentrated in the private sector, imposing exorbitant prices for any treatment and making their access restricted to a small percentage of the population with economic wealth, the most of the Portuguese simply unable to have continued access to dentistry. Perhaps it was here that the Order of Dentists should act, agreeing to respect for the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic and requiring the integration of oral medicine at the National Health Service SNS in portuguese), in perfect competition with the private sector. Everyone would benefit:

-better career choice for young dentists;

-increased competition between the public and the private sector, lowering considerably the current prices charged by expensive clinics and offices and greatly improving the quality of services provided;

-easier access to oral health care, translated by a significant improvement in oral health of its population.

The fact that the ratio of professionals in Portugal is above the European average is an asset that has not been translated in terms of gains for the population, since studies show a significant lag indicators of oral health relative to other european countries. Thus, there is still a large gap in oral health care to provide the Portuguese population that can easily absorb all the existing professional.

The existence of dentists still relatively young age is beneficial for the country, young people are always more willing to do more and better oral health for the population of our country. It is up to them to open up new prospects for the provision of oral health care to the population, overcoming obstacles and inertia of those already installed in the area for a long time and that reluctance has adaptations, breaking vested interests in the sector and placing the dental the service of those who most need to be effectively met. Have the Order of Dentists capacity to invest in these young doctors and dentists seeking to boost the oral health sector in the country, betting on innovative initiatives that enhance young doctors and dentists that are beneficial to the population - and the cooperative unions, for example, may be alternative ways to defend the interests of young dentists against the abused and exploited by big business of health and the Ministry of Health.

If there are several hundreds of dentists Portuguese emigrants, then it is because you will be offered dignified conditions of work that makes up for his trip abroad, the Dental Association and other organizations related to oral health should strive to practice and also demand these same conditions in Portugal.

The Order of Dentists should provide, first, access to all Portuguese to oral health care on equal terms in both the public and the private sector, limiting the places for dentistry should never be a priority while own Dental Association recognize that a large majority of the Portuguese population remains unable to have access to oral health care. Current pained in terms of career opportunities in our country lie in the lack of regulation and the almost complete lack of active monitoring of activity of dentistry in our country, by allowing multinational corporations, big business groups and insurers do every kind of exploitation of labor, work, or any health guarantee for customers.