Many middle schoolers ask for gadgets or technology for their birthdays, but not Texas eighth grader Aeva Leck, who has asked for the same thing since the third grade - braces. "Aeva's been asking for forever," says her mother Jessica Benenate.
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Dentist treats patients who have anxiety, special needs
Photos are displayed on the walls on Dec. 12, 2017 at Children's Dentistry, 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype Children's Dentistry employees, from left, Lynn Campos, scheduling coordinator, Lamarious Nichols, dental assistant, and Elizabeth Castillo, who is a biller, pose for a portrait on Dec. 12, 2017 at 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype The exterior of the newest Children's Dentistry location at 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype A photo of an operating room at Children's Dentistry, 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype Photos are displayed on the walls on Dec. 12, 2017 at Children's Dentistry, 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype Children's Dentistry employees, from left, Lamarious Nichols, Elizabeth Castillo and Lynn Campos working at the front desk on Dec. 12, 2017 at 1820 E. Lake Mead Blvd., Suite 6. @KailynHype Shanti Coleman ... (more)
Why and how to get involved in community outreach programs at your dental school
There are tremendous oral health disparities in the US. Early Childhood Caries (ECC) is the most common chronic childhood disease, being five times more common than asthma. [1] Research shows that approximately one in four children aged 3-5 and 6-9 living in poverty in the U.S. have untreated dental caries. [2] Untreated caries is nearly twice as high for Hispanic children compared with non-Hispanic white children aged 6-9 years. Fortunately, there are many oral health initiatives that focus on improving the status of ECC in the U.S.
An example of a successful U.S. outreach program is the Access to Baby and Child Dentistry (ABCD) program. The goal was to increase the number of children under 5, who visit the dentist through educational initiatives for parents and dental professionals. [3]
There are many ways dental students can become involved in community outreach.
Here are 6 easy ways dental students to get started:
- Reach out to faculty members conducting research or programs in the community. A meeting with faculty will allow students to learn about exciting opportunities happening on and off campus.
- Contact local community health clinics for dental volunteer positions. FQHCs/Local community health clinics provide many resources for underserved communities.
- Connect underserved community members to a dental home. Visit local pre-schools, high schools, or other community centers for opportunities to provide information on how to schedule an appointment at local dental clinics.
- Brush up on your languages. As dental providers, communicating with your patient is important. Learning key phrases in the language of your community will help patients understand and communicate with you.
- Get familiar with your dental school clinic’s appointment protocols. Learning about your institutions’ appointment procedures can help patients receive dental treatment faster.
- Ask your dental school administration to open and establish opportunities with your local community health centers, be an advocate of community collaboration.
There are vast opportunities and support that offer students experience to acquire useful skills to use throughout their professional career. We need to take care of the dental needs of our community first!
Your time at dental school goes by fast, so make the most of your incredible opportunity connect with your community partners now!
~ Francisco Ramos-Gomez DDS, MS, MPH, Professor of Section of Pediatric Dentistry, UCLA
[1] US Department of Health and Human Services, “Oral health in America,” A Report of the Surgeon General, 2000, http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/reports/oralhealth/.
[2] Dye BA, Li X, Thornton-Evans G. Oral health disparities as determined by selected Healthy People 2020 oral health objectives for the United States, 2009–2010. NCHS data brief, no 104. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2012.
[3] Kobayashi M, Chi D, Coldwell SE, Domoto P, Milgrom P. The effectiveness and estimated costs of the Access to Baby and Child Dentistry program in Washington State, 2005. The Journal of the American Dental Association, vol. 136, no. 9, 2005, www.ada.org/goto/jada. Accessed 1 Dec. 2017.
Center City Emergency Dentist Provides Orthodontic Repair During the Holidays
Residents who live near Center City and wish to learn more about orthodontics this holiday season are encouraged to give Center City Emergency Dentist a call today to make an appointment with Dr. Han Lee. Sticky, hard or chewy foods have the potential to misalign wiring or crack brackets off the teeth, which can lead to damage to the forming dental work if not corrected quickly.
In this Second Opinion, Dr. Lisa Knowles discusses the fallout that occurs when healthcare practitioners abuse the trust placed in them. Using a prominent case of patient abuse as an illustration, she writes that all practitioners lose credibility when one person in the professional community errs in judgment.
A plant used in traditional Indian medicine may also benefit orthodontic and dental patients. A new study found that neem mouthwash rivaled chlorhexidine at reducing three oral health indicators for patients with braces.Dentist gets 16 years in prison for sexually assaulting male patients
A D.C. Superior Court Judge on Dec. 15 sentenced former District dentist Bilal Ahmed to 16 and a half years in prison for sexually assaulting five male former patients and one male former employee at his dental office on the 2300 block of M St., N.W., between 2010 and 2014. The sentence also calls for Ahmed, 45, to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life upon his release from prison, at which time he will also be placed on three years of supervised probation.
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