Investec backs new dental service

Outlying rural communities in New South Wales will benefit from an innovative new oral health care program funded in partnership with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), Investec Bank and the Gonski Foundation, an Australian family philanthropic foundation.

Launched by NSW Premier, the Hon. Barry O'Farrell, the dental service known as "TOOTH - The Outback Oral Health and Treatment - Program", will provide much-needed assistance to disadvantaged remote locations in NSW.

The $2.5 million funding needed to ensure its viability for the first three years will come from a unique partnership between the Investec Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Investec Bank (Australia) Limited, the Gonski Foundation and the RFDS.

In its first year, the TOOTH Program will conduct 128 dental clinics in Bourke, Collarenebri, Goodooga and Lightning Ridge.