Senior students from the Department of Child Development at the Faculty of Health Sciences organized an event for children at the Kırşehir Şehit Polis Hayrettin Yılmaz Oral and Dental Health Center under the supervision of Dr. Habibe Dilsiz. For the past two years, the department’s students have played an active role in helping children cope with fear and anxiety related to dental hospitals and oral procedures. The aim of these practices is to instill proper oral and dental health habits in children from an early age. Within this scope, the students have also developed posters, brochures, and educational activity materials suitable for young children. The appropriateness of these materials in terms of content and scope is carefully evaluated from the perspective of child development by Dr. Habibe Dilsiz and from the dental perspective by Chief Dentist Dt. Müge Şebnem Şahin in close collaboration.

Providing information about the purpose and scope of the activities, Dr. Habibe Dilsiz stated that the primary and most important goal of the full-day sessions held every Tuesday and Wednesday during the academic year is to regulate fear and anxiety experienced by children aged 2 to 12 regarding dental procedures through playful and engaging activities. She also noted that another important practice is the “Hospital Tour” program for preschool children. The first tour took place on May 28, 2024, and the second on October 22, 2025. Dr. Meral Kılıçözlü Kindergarten’s 5-year-old students, accompanied by Principal Muazzez Kamalı and teacher Gülçin Er, enjoyed an educational and fun experience at the Kırşehir Şehit Polis Hayrettin Yılmaz Oral and Dental Health Center.

During the visit to the Kırşehir Şehit Polis Hayrettin Yılmaz Oral and Dental Health Center, the kindergarten students were accompanied by Chief Dentist Dt. Müge Şebnem Şahin, who guided them through the examination rooms and the X-ray unit. Child Development Department students also took part in the visit, gifting the children educational materials they had prepared on the theme of “Healthy Teeth” and organizing fun face-painting activities. The University’s Directorate of Corporate Communication also contributed to the event.

Chief Dentist Dt. Müge Şebnem Şahin expressed her happiness with the practices carried out at the center over the past two years by the students of our university’s Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Child Development. She added that this field practice is a functional model that can be considered a “good practice example.”

Dr. Habibe Dilsiz stated that they received positive feedback from both pedodontists working at the center and parents regarding the practice. Emphasizing the importance of sustaining this initiative, which is the first of its kind in the country, she thanked the Child Development students who contributed to its preparation, Chief Dentist Dt. Müge Şebnem Şahin and the center’s staff for opening their doors, as well as the University’s Coordination Office of Institunional Communication for their support.