Special needs dental facility opens at Western

CTV London: New special dental facility A new dental clinic at Western University will serve those who require general anesthetic for procedures. Jan Sims reports.

A special dental facility for people with special needs is now 'wide open' in London.

Located beside the dental clinic at Western University, it will serve people who must undergo a general anesthetic for dental procedures.

Recovery bays are adjacent to a state-of-the-art treatment room but what's not so obvious are features like wider aisles to accommodate wheelchairs.

The new suite officially opened Tuesday at Western's Schulich School of Dentistry.

It's designed for patients who must now wait as long as 18 months for treatment in hospital.

Dr. Harinder Sandhu says it will serve patients with physical and intellectual challenges who need to be under a general anesthetic when they receive dental treatment.

"It will be a wide range of procedures. There will be fillings to advance cleaning of teeth to wisdom teeth extractions."

Maria Sinocic knows first hand the challenges.

Her daughter Christine has special needs and she understands the concerns of similar families.

"If they can't speak and tell you my tooth is hurting and they're grinding their teeth, there has to be something that's going on," Sinocic says.

Eventually the two treatment rooms and six recovery bays will be able to accommodate up to 60 patients a week.