Pasifika dentist and New Zealand Dental Association (NZDA) member Dr. Tule Fanakava Misa is concerned about the poor rates of oral health for Pasifika people, in particular Pasifika children.
The recently released report Bula Sautu: A window on quality 2021: Pacific health in the year of Covid-19 highlighted wider concerns over Pasifika general health. The NZDA continues to be concerned about the dental health of Pasifika people in New Zealand.
Dr. Misa says figures show only 36 percent of five-year-old Pasifika children being free of caries (tooth decay) compared with 69 percent of non-Māori, non-Pasifika children. “Pasifika dental health concerns should not be forgotten, and these data show just how bad the inequities and inequalities have become.”
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