catching up with the Village Dentist

We recently caught up with Dr Oliver Cvekus, aka The Village Dentist from Castle Hill, NSW, and winner of the Outstanding Organisation Award at the 2019 HESTA Aged Care Awards.
 

A modern dental facility for aged care residents and other elderly or less mobile members of the wider community, the Village Dentist won the award for providing preventative dental care and promoting the wellbeing of aged care residents.

Oliver, what did winning the award mean in the short term?

Winning the award was a huge honor. All of the team at HESTA was very supportive and the event was a great networking opportunity to swap ideas with many others in the aged care sector. It also gave us hope that our recognition would increase awareness of the importance of oral care in aged care facilities and how it directly affects their general health, comfort and quality of life.

How did you use the prize money?

We used the prize money to purchase new equipment, which enabled us to open an additional surgery. Since then we’ve been able to provide more preventive services to aged care residents.

How did the award help you in the long term?

We were able to develop training programs for staff in aged care facilities to enable them to provide better oral care to residents. It also enabled us to have the infrastructure to employ a dental hygienist to provide more regular dental maintenance for residents and patients in a more cost-effective manner without sacrificing quality of care.

I should also mention that we displayed the physical award itself and it acted as a conversation starter for visitors to the clinic as well as for aged care staff.

Would you recommend that other HACS workers nominate others for the award?

Yes, nomination of others will only increase the reach of the awards and provide more awareness of excellence in the HACS industry.

Did you know much about HESTA prior to winning the award?

We really only knew HESTA as a superannuation fund prior to the awards. After this, we learned of all the awareness they bring to industries such as aged care, among others. We also learned that they offer a whole suite of services and support for those in health care industries.