Polident campaign expands denture access for underserved Malaysians

Polident, a denture care brand under Haleon Malaysia, has launched Bersamamu, Senyuman Dikembalikan (We Got You: Returning Smiles), a nationwide initiative aimed at improving denture access among underserved older Malaysians while generating new research on oral health and quality of life.

The campaign brings together four dental faculties from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Universiti Malaya (UM), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), and MAHSA University, alongside retail partner Watsons Malaysia, to provide 240 eligible Malaysians aged 50 and above with free full dentures and oral health education.

The programme comes amid concerns over unmet oral healthcare needs in the country. According to Malaysia’s National Oral Health Survey of Adults (NOHSA), 48.4 per cent of Malaysian adults require dentures, yet only 16.3 per cent currently have them, highlighting a significant treatment gap.

Addressing a growing oral health need

Under the initiative, Malaysian citizens aged 50 and above who are fully toothless in the upper, lower or both arches will be eligible to receive complete dentures at no cost, subject to terms and conditions. The dentures will be fabricated and fitted by Year 4 and Year 5 dental students from the participating universities under the supervision of qualified dentists.

Neelesh Suryavanshee, General Manager of Haleon Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, said the programme reflects the company’s commitment to improving everyday health outcomes through collaboration.

“At Haleon, our purpose is to deliver everyday health with humanity. For Polident specifically, we bring this purpose to life through Bersamamu, a campaign structured around three interdependent pillars: access, education, and research on dentures and oral care. However, this is not something we can do alone. This is why we are proud to bring this multisector coalition together, and we look forward to scaling this programme to more Malaysians in the future,” he said.

The Malaysian initiative builds on a regional programme that has provided more than 7,000 free dentures to underserved communities in Indonesia and the Philippines since 2023.

Research to measure quality of life impact

Beyond providing dentures, the campaign will also support a clinical observational study led by UKM to examine the relationship between denture access and oral health-related quality of life.

The study will use the validated OHIP-14 framework and track participants at intervals of one week, three months, six months and 12 months after treatment. Findings are expected to contribute to Malaysia’s oral health evidence base upon publication.

Dr Hetal Ashvin Kumar, Lead Principal Investigator of the Senyuman Dikembalikan Research Study from UKM’s Faculty of Dentistry, said the initiative offers valuable learning opportunities for future dental professionals while benefiting patients.

“Bersamamu is more than a CSR campaign. For the students of our four dental faculties, it is one of the most meaningful classrooms they will ever step into. These are Malaysians who may not have smiled comfortably in years, who have avoided certain foods, or who feel self-conscious even among family members. When students become part of the journey that restores someone’s confidence and quality of life, it changes how they understand what it truly means to care for a patient,” she said.

As part of the campaign, Watsons Malaysia will contribute RM1 from every Polident product purchased in-store and online between June 1 and July 31, 2026, towards funding free dentures for eligible patients, with contributions capped at RM80,000.