Quality Dental Care for Low-Income Youth

Health Care Access

San Gabriel Valley

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

Every day in California, millions of people including children, working families and the elderly, live in constant pain as a result of oral disease. It is our goal to serve as the low-cost, high quality community clinic for these members of our community.?? The patients treated in our clinic are in desperate need of dental treatment and education. The decay that we are seeing in our patients and among the students we screen has continued to increase, and so many of the children we see are in emergency situations. All of the children treated in our clinic live at least 100% below the Federal Poverty Line, and 40% do not have dental insurance. Most of our new patients lack a dental home, and come to us only when they are in extreme pain. They fear the dentist, and we work hard to provide them with a place of comfort, and one where they know they will be treated with compassion. Upon visiting our clinic, they find a warm, welcoming team who truly care about their health. ?

SGVFDH has been providing high quality dental care, screenings and education to low-income youth for 25 years. Founded in 1996, the clinic opened in 1997 and has provided more than $4.5 million worth of dental care to 12,500+ low-income children and provided dental education to 155,000+ low-income children and their families. In addition to treating 431 children and 277 adults this past year in our clinic, SGVFDH also provided dental screenings, education and/or fluoride treatments to 7,949 Head Start and school students throughout the San Gabriel Valley, as well as dental education to 676 individuals in our community and in our clinic. This combination of preventive and restorative dental care, screenings and education to underserved youth and their families reduces barriers in access to oral health care and assists in meeting the immediate needs of underserved populations. Our clinic staff works diligently to deal with the issues caused by the socioeconomic disparities in the treatment of oral health problems, which affect low-income children the most. ?The percentage below shows that our dentists and hygienists are cutting a clear path to reducing the number of cavities, infection and gum disease. Of those children returning to the clinic for periodic dental exams last fiscal year, 60% had no new decay or disease. This proves that with regular exams and education, we can make a difference in the future of our children's dental health. ??

SGVFDH has become the dental home to the low-income youth - a place where they pay $40 regardless of the amount of dental work performed ($60 for adults) or Denti-Cal is billed on their behalf, and a place where they feel safe and comfortable. We employ two dentists, so patients often see the same dentist each time they visit, which makes the experience much more relaxing. ??In addition to becoming the low-cost, high quality community dental clinic to the needy children in our community, we provide a substantial dental screening and education program to our local elementary, middle, and high schools and Head Start Programs. Without our services, these children will not receive the dental screenings and education that is so desperately needed in our community. We have partnered with many local dentists, hygienists, dental assistants, students, and foundations to provide the extensive preventive dental education at each of the screenings we attend.

Our goals for the year ahead are to provide: * A comprehensive dental home for low-income children throughout the San Gabriel Valley, which includes education and improvement of overall dental hygiene resulting in a reduction in the number of urgent cases. * A learning environment that teaches dental/dental assisting students to operate a pediatric care facility. * In-clinic treatments and education to 650 children and 100 adults. * Off-site dental screenings to 900 Options-Head Start, Kindergarten and First grade students on their campuses. * Dental education to 8,000 individuals in our community. Statistics relating to the number of patients treated and recurrence of dental decay are recorded after each clinic session and reported at quarterly board meetings. Records are also kept at all screenings, including the number of students with decay. When later grades are screened, and a reduction in decay and/or urgent cases is recorded, that equates to successful education.