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Construction starts on Riverland Oral Health Centre

Friday, 20 May 2016

A ceremony to mark the start of construction of the Riverland Oral Health Centre will be held in Berri today.

Funded by the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n Government’s former Health and Hospitals Fund (Regional Priority Initiative) program, the $6 million centre will provide public dental services for the region’s 11,000 eligible adults and 4000-4500 children under 18, as well as providing essential rural training places for the .

The Riverland Oral Health Centre is co-located with the Riverland General Hospital and expected to be complete towards the end of this year.

The clinic will include 10 dental chairs and x-ray facilities; a special high-speed fibre IT network connection; administration, teaching, study and research areas; and laboratory and sterilisation support facilities.

The centre will be operated by the South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n Dental Service under the 30-year Dental Education Partnership Agreement between the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide and SA Health. This also includes the new 89-chair Adelaide Dental Hospital opening in July 2017 in the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide Health and Medical Sciences building, in the city’s West End.

“This new centre at Berri is a key part of our 30-year agreement with the State Government, helping us continue to provide quality dental services to the South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n community and provide our students with clinical placements into the foreseeable future,” says ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Warren Bebbington.

“We are proud to be able to offer this essential service of state-of-the-art dental care to the rural communities of South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥, while providing our students with valuable clinical experience.”

Final-year dentistry students will spend 48 weeks at the clinic on a rotational basis under the supervision of qualified dentists and academic staff.

“This new state-of-the-art centre will ensure people living in the Riverland have access to high-quality dental services close to where they live,” says Mr Geoff Franklin, Executive Director, SA Dental Service.

“It will also provide a strong learning environment that will foster our next generation of dental professionals.

“The Riverland Oral Health Centre is a vital part of our 30 year agreement with the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide and I look forward to the Centre improving dental care for people living in the Riverland.”

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