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A resident dentist and dental hygienist treat a patient at the UAMS 12th Street Health & Wellness Center.
| The Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation recently renewed a $30,000 grant to UAMS 12u Street Health & Wellness Center to help pay for additional dental care for first-come, first-served patients at the free clinic.
Some of the center’s patients are referred for the next level of care to the UAMS Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation Oral Health Clinic. The 12thu Street Center’s dental service is free to patients and has seen hundreds of patients since it opened in 2015. Delta Dental first awarded the grant in 2016.
Dental hygiene students and dentists at the center provide oral screenings and basic dental care under the supervision of licensed dentists and dental hygienists. Services there include cleanings, simple fillings and take-outs.
“The main point of extractions is to get them out of pain and then refer them to the oral health clinic for comprehensive care,” said Dana Bodenner, DDS, assistant professor in the UAMS Center for Dental Education. “The 12thu Street Center patients come from the nearby Promise neighborhood and are uninsured. The next priority is to get them Medicaid coverage so they have more access to dental care in the future.”
The interprofessional 12u The Street Center opened in 2013. There, students from all UAMS colleges and the Graduate School provide health and wellness services, including disease and medication management, dental exams, health screenings, education and immunizations for the community.
Along with Bodenner, the other co-principal investigators on the grant are Ashley McMillan, DDS, associate professor in the Center for Dental Education, and Claire Tucker, Ed.D., RDH, chair of the Department of Dental Hygiene in the UAMS College of Health Professions.
“The foundation’s generosity allows us to expand and help our patients and our students as well.” Tucker said. “It supports both our educational mission by providing our students with opportunities for hands-on experience and our patient care mission by making much-needed dental care available to many patients who would otherwise not receive it.”
Interprofessional education is also an important component of dental resident education, Bodenner said. At 12 o’clocku Street Center, interact with students from all UAMS colleges in group care, giving them a richer experience that they can take with them into practice after completing their coursework.
He said they try to see about 80 patients a year at the extraction clinic at 12u Street Center and refer another 15 to 20 to the Oral Health Clinic for further treatment when required.
Many are offered referrals to the clinic, but because they have transportation issues and time off work, only a percentage of them show up to the clinic, Bodenner said.
These patients are asked to pay a small percentage of the cost, about 10%, but the rest of the cost is discounted or covered by the clinic.
