Tooth decay is the most common childhood disease, with dental cavities in young children carrying numerous long-range effects. In Nevada, approximately 120,000 low-income children are in need of dental services. Saint Mary's has responded to these needs by combining efforts with various community partners in order to offer both Preventative and Restorative Mobile Dental Outreach programs.
Mobile Outreach - Preventative Dental - Saint Mary's Dental Sealant Program
The Saint Mary's school-based dental sealent program is made possible through a group of generous donors and an oral health initiative grant from the State of Nevada. This program seeks to reduce the incidence of childhood decay by targeting the six-year molars of second grade students for sealant placement. Plastic material is applied to the grooves or permanent molars to discourage the development of tooth decay. This program is offered at no cost to students attending schools identified by the local school districts as being "at-risk."
An educational component of the program includes a thirty-minute classroom presentation of the dental sealant placement procedure and a demonstration of proper brushing and flossing techniques. Dental treatment takes place on the Saint Mary's Take Care-A-Van, a 40-foot truck fully equipped to function as a mobile dental health unit. The program provides service to local schools and communities within a 90-mile radius of Reno.
During the 2007-2008 school year, over 1,200 children received sealants with more than 3,400 sealants placed. Additionally, nearly 2,400 children received oral health education and more than 1,000 children were referred to dental clinics, private dentists or their families for needed restorative care.
For more information about Mobile Outreach - Preventative Dental, contact Kathy Barlow at (775) 770-3558 or at kathy.barlow@chw.edu.
Mobile Outreach - Restorative Dental - Saint Mary's Mobile Dental Clinic
The Restorative Dental program is another of Saint Mary's Mission Outreach programs. Because of the tremendous need for children to receive restorative care, Saint Mary's, The Task Force for a Healthy Nevada, The Bretzlaff, John B. Snow and Pennington Foundations and Scolari's Markets funded a 53-foot mobile dental office.
The goal of this effort is to improve access for the underserved in northern Nevada. The program provides general dental care including preventive and restorative services to qualified Medicaid and Nevada Check-up recipients. In 2008, 2,209 patients were served totaling 5,554 patient visits.
In addition to visiting "at-risk" schools within Washoe and Lyon Counties, the mobile van also operates on-site at Nell J. Redfield Clinic (3195 Neil Road in Reno) and various Scolari's Food and Drug locations.
For more information about Mobile Outreach - Restorative Dental, contact Garrett Earley, program supervisor, at (775) 770-3591 or at garret.earley@chw.edu.
Links to related programs and resources:
