​Rofhiwa Marubini 
The Gauteng Department of Health (GDoH) has urged the public to make use of oral health services that are offered at public health facilities across the province.
Gauteng oral centres provides services such as dental consultations and oral health education, dental extractions, fillings, scaling and polishing (cleaning), fissure sealants, implants, orthodontics, dentures, crown and bridge, maxillofacial and oral surgery and laser treatment in dentistry. 
As the country observes the national Oral Health Month, the Department said gum disease and cavities rank amongst the world's most common health problems and can be avoided with regular good oral hygiene. 
Good oral hygiene not only does it ensure a beautiful smile, but it is good for your health – gum disease has been linked to coronary heart disease, adverse pregnancy outcomes and diabetes. 
The World Health Organisation (WHO) suggest that the majority of oral health conditions are dental caries (tooth decay), periodontal diseases, oral cancers, oral manifestations of HIV, oro-dental trauma, cleft lip and palate, and noma.
Gauteng Department of Health says in 2020/2021 financial year over 320 000 patients presented at various health facilities for oral services. 
"The most requested services were extractions (319 419), fillings (16668), dentures (3 565), orthodontic treatment (2479), implants (828)," the department said in a statement. 
For the same period, the Department had registered 69238 children on the brushing programme. 
The province is expanding specialised dental services to District Health Services to alleviate the high demand for specialised dental services at the Oral Health Centres (OHC) and Dental Schools. 
This is helping with the reduction of waiting times for specialised services at OHCs, and it is improving the patient experience of care. 
An extended teaching platform for Wits Oral Health Centre is being built at Zola Community Health Centre. 
"This state-of-the-art facility is being built where Zola Dental Clinic used to stand. This will assist to bring specialised services closer to the communities," the department said.​