State starting free training for dentists in pediatric dentistry

One of the many problems with Kentucky's oral health is that not enough dentists are willing to accept children as patients, or lack proficiency in treating children when they are around age 1, the recommended time for a child's first dental visit.

Next week, the state Department of Public Health will start to offer free continuing education for dentists and other oral-health professionals who need or want training in pediatric dentistry, funded by a federal grant.

The Access for Babies and Children to Dentistry (ABCD) program will have one-day training sessions in Lexington on Friday, April 6, at the Embassy Suites on Newtown Pike next to the interstate, and in Somerset on Wednesday, April 11, at the Hampton Inn on US 27. Both sessions will start at 8:30 a.m. The sessions offer 8 continuing education units out of a possible 20 in the program.

For more information about the training, and to register for it, contact Meghan Towle at Meghan.Towle@ky.gov or 502-564-2154.