Lincoln, Beatrice, Grand Island, Harvard Children to Benefit

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.