UNMC College of Dentistry to Host Childrens Dental
Day; Provide 185 Underserved Children Free Dental Care on April 8 in Lincoln
The University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry, located
in Lincoln, will host Childrens Dental Day on Monday, April 8. The day-long
event will provide 185 children from Lincoln, Beatrice, Grand Island and
Harvard, a day of free dental screening, diagnosis, care and education.
The event will take place from 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., at the college in
Lincoln, at 40th and Holdrege streets. Dental services will be donated
by 200 UNMC dental and dental hygiene students, 56 UNMC faculty and dental
residents and 40 staff. Other participants include the Hope Medical Outreach
Coalition and volunteers from the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department,
dental hygiene faculty and students from Central Community College and
dental assistant students from Southeast Community College.
School-aged children will receive free dental exams, cleaning, fluoride
treatments, sealants, restorative work, and emergency care as needed. The
event will draw children from 100 miles around Lincoln with focus on communities,
which are not fluoridated, where access to dental care is limited or unavailable.
Participating schools are Saratoga Elementary School of Lincoln; Lincoln
Elementary School of Grand Island; Harvard Elementary School of Harvard;
and students from four schools in Beatrice: Cedar Elementary, Stoddard
Elementary, Paddock Elementary and Lincoln Elementary.
Its a wonderful opportunity for the college to exercise both its education
and outreach missions, said John Reinhardt, D.D.S., dean of the UNMC College
of Dentistry. We hope the care and education will provide will improve
the dental health of the children now and in the future. We think this
experience is good for our students in learning the importance of giving
back to the community. In addition, they will receive the valuable technical
experience, as they will undoubtedly see a wide variety of dental disease.
The college hosts the event twice a year to provide underserved children
access to dental health care. The program is an effort to address the oral
health needs of Nebraska children from low income, uninsured and homeless
families.
As part of our commitment to community service, the college hopes to
emphasize that good oral health contributes significantly to good general
health, said David Brown, Ph.D., the colleges executive associate dean
and one of the event organizers. Good oral health in children results
in happier, more attentive children.
Dental Day also will provide children with educational and entertainment
activities designed to teach the importance of good dental habits. Dental
characters such as Count Plaqula, armed with a giant toothbrush, Orthoman,
Perioman, Pedoman and clowns will entertain children with games, including
those that teach good snacks versus bad, how soda pop affects their teeth
and what decay looks like.
Lunch, and snacks such as carrots, popcorn and apples, will be provided.
Children also will receive a bag of items, including toothbrushes, toothpaste,
floss, activity books and stickers. Interpreters also will be available.
Last year, U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., released the first-ever
Surgeon Generals Report on Oral Health in America. The report, which praises
the advances in oral health sciences during the past 50 years, also points
out disparities. Many lower-income families and minorities, such as Native
Americans, Hispanics, and African Americans, are missing out on the benefits
of oral health care.
While 43 million Americans have no health insurance, 150 million have
no dental coverage, according to the report. Only 32 states cover any kind
of dental care for Medicaid-eligible adults (Nebraska is one that does),
and less than half of 1 percent of Medicaid expenditures are for childrens
dental services. Medicaid reimbursement rates for dental services are woefully
low (although recently increased in Nebraska); and, when coupled with time
and administrative burdens to the dentist, offer few incentives to provide
Medicaid treatment.
Financial sponsors of Childrens Dental Day are: Ameritas Group Dental,
the Sowers Club of Lincoln, Inc. and the Nebraska Dental Association.
Donors of dental and other supplies are DENTSPLY, Oral B, Proctor and Gamble
(Crest), Patterson Dental Supply, Inc., G.C. America, Inc., Ultradent,
Sara Lee Breads and Pastries, Pepsi-Cola Products, Fairbury Hot Dogs, Colby
Ridge Popcorn, Hy-Vee Inc., Super Saver Grocery and Weavers Potato Chips.