Mobile dental clinics bring preventive care to students

The dentist scraped her teeth clean, polished them with bubblegum-flavored paste and applied a reinforcing coat of fluoride gel.

Clutching a mirror, 7-year-old Janaya Mccamey watched and listened carefully as Dr. Karyn Boltz explained the process from behind a mask.

“It’s like muscles for your teeth, to help them grow big and strong and fight off those cavities,” Boltz said, flexing her arms as Janaya smiled.

Janaya didn’t have to travel far or to an office for the dental experience — instead, she just walked down the hallway from her first-grade classroom at Imagine Schools’ Great Western Academy.

The Hilltop charter school is one of many schools in central Ohio that regularly welcome mobile dentists who provide students with preventive care in their schools. Some programs even provide treatments, including fillings, extractions and stainless-steel crowns.

Educators say the service keeps students healthy and ready to learn, especially those who otherwise might not see a dentist regularly. That’s the situation for many children across the country, often because their families lack insurance, transportation or the time to travel to appointments.

“By bringing the care to the need, we overcome these obstacles,” said spokesman Eric Tolkin of mobile dental company Ohio Dental Outreach.

U.S. students miss more than 51 million hours of

school a year because of untreated dental problems, according to an oral-health report issued by the U.S. Surgeon General in 2000.

At least one untreated, decayed tooth is found in about 20 percent of children ages 5 to 11, and in 13 percent of kids ages 12 to 19, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That makes untreated tooth decay one of the most common chronic conditions affecting children. The issue disproportionately affects low-income families, so in-school programs

typically target schools with a large number of students receiving free or reduced-price lunches from the federal government.

The programs accept dental insurance and Medicaid, but children without either can receive donated services. No child is turned away because of a family’s inability to pay.

Great Western Academy is in its third year of hosting dentists from Ohio Dental Outreach, which is part of Michigan-based Smile Programs, which provides preventive care in the school gymnasium.

About 200 of the school’s 760 students participated this week, Assistant Principal Laura Holler said.

The dentists send kids home with a toothbrush,

a sticker and a status report on their teeth, to help parents plan for follow-up care.

Last year, they saw 35,000 students in 287 Ohio school districts.

Another major central Ohio program is a mobile dental clinic operated by the Ohio State University College of Dentistry, which provides care to about 2,500 students a year, a majority of them from Columbus City Schools. Licensed dentists work with fourth-year dental students to develop treatment plans; they often refer families to outside partners for care.

Oral health affects children’s overall wellbeing, including their ability to swallow, talk and learn and, often, how their jaws and permanent teeth develop, said Dr. Canise Bean,

the community education director at the OSU College of Dentistry.

In addition to providing care, in-school programs give dentists a chance to teach kids good habits early, Bean said.

“We firmly believe your teeth can last you a lifetime,” she said.

In-school programs continue to expand in central Ohio, probably because of increases in both need

and awareness, those involved said.

The Hilliard school district will host its first Ohio Dental Outreach programs starting this month in nine elementary and two sixth-grade schools, said Mike Abraham, the district’s director of student well-being.

He said one principal reported “good news and sad news” — about 75 students alreadyhave signed up for a clinic in mid-march.

“I think, as educators, we’re all becoming more aware that kids aren’t going to excel academically until you take care of their basic needs first,” Abraham said. “If your dental and medical needs aren’t being met, homework is probably the last thing on your mind.”