When Dr. Chantal Plant first decided to establish her dental practice in Blackburn Hamlet in 2003, she did so with the intention of making the community her home. Part of that process was to take part in community events like the Blackburn Fun Fair every June.

In 2017, Dr. Plant took part in the Brush-a-mania campaign in two local schools – Good Shepherd Catholic and École élémentaire catholique Ste-Marie.

Brush-a-mania is designed to promote oral health and preventative dentistry among children from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 6. The goal of the program is to educate and motivate children by bringing together dentists, teachers and parents to create a celebration around proper dental care.

Dr. Plant is passionate about child dentistry. It has always been her mission to demystify dental care and make it a positive and fun experience for children and the best way to do that is to see them as early as possible. Having the Brush-a-mania mascot – the Dentavenger – with you doesn’t hurt either.

“It’s about being able to show the kids that dentists are not scary and if you take care of your teeth going to the dentist can be fun,” says Dr. Plant, whose own daughter Quinn is in Grade 3 at École Ste-Marie.

Besides introducing herself to the students, Dr. Plant says her visits help reinforce the oral health education and healthy food choices many schools are already teaching them.

“They talk a lot about proper oral care in schools, especially during this month,” says Dr. Plant.

During the 20-minute presentation, Dr. Plant teaches the students the proper way to brush and floss their teeth, and the importance of maintaining a proper diet, including the importance of avoiding sugary drinks and snacks.

At the end of the presentation, each student receives a free toothbrush and toothpaste and they go through a routine brushing their teeth together for three minutes to a catchy song.

Interestingly, many of Dr. Plant’s clients who first started coming to her as teenagers are now bringing their own children to see her, bridging the generations.

“It’s really cool, but they are coming in both directions. I have some patients who are bringing their parents to see me as new patients as well,” explains Dr. Plant, who gives back to the local community in any way she can.

Besides taking part in the Blackburn Fun Fair Parade every year, Dr. Plant recently hosted a family skate at the Blackburn Arena on Family Day with a special guest appearance by local figure skater David Shteyngart who won a bronze medal at the Canadian Junior Figure Skating Championships in January.

To find more about Dr. Plant and the Blackburn Shoppes Dental Centre, visit
ottawafamilydentist.com.