UTDB faculty and community dentists join together to treat needy children
Jose Manuel, 4, holds tightly to
his mother’s hand as they wait
in line during the Give Kids A
Smile Day event. Jose and his
siblings, Tanya and Katie all
received treatment that day.
Photos by Brian Schnupp,
Dental Branch
If giving smiles was the goal, UT Dental Branch faculty, staff and students along with Greater Houston Dental Society community dentists and volunteers went above and beyond their call on Saturday Feb. 24 at “Give Kids A Smile Day,” annual charity care event.
From lessons in dental hygiene to filling cavities to performing oral surgery, the service was comprehensive — and free of charge.
A total of 766 procedures were performed on 131 children and four adults. The cost of those procedures is the equivalent of $55,823 in care. An additional $4,230 was donated to the community in supplies and staff time.
For those who benefited, it was simply “a blessing.”
“I was so excited to hear about this project,” said Luz Maria Maldonado, a mother of three children. “Dental care without dental insurance is extremely expensive. When I heard about this program, I thought to myself ‘this is fabulous.’ ”
Nina Infante, director of the School of Dental
Hygiene , and Gissela Anderson, D.D.S.,
associate professor of Periodontics, are all
smiles at Give Kids A Smile Day.
Maldonado learned about the program from the Epiphany Community Health Outreach Services (ECHOS), one of three area agencies the Greater Houston Dental Society worked with to inform patients about the program. The other agencies were San Jose Clinic and Communities In Schools.
Jean Kegler, executive director of the ECHOS, called the day a “gift” to their clients.
“From security guards to students to dental society volunteer staff — each was warm, welcoming and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying this opportunity to give something special to a community with such a great need,” she said in a letter to Lee Clitheroe, D.D.S., president of the Greater Houston Dental Society. “What a wonderful role model the dental school is for the medical center community and the community in general.”
A crowd of community residents
gladly waited in line for free
dental
care in the hallway of the
UT
Dental Branch. A total of 766
procedures were performed on
131 children and four adults.
The cost of those procedures is
the equivalent of $55,823 in care.
An additional $4,230 was
donated
to the community in
supplies and
staff time.
Peggy O’Neill, Ph.D., D.D.S., interim associate dean for Patient Care, said the success of the event can be credited to a group of people motivated by a common goal — caring for others.
This group includes Dental Branch students, who jumped at the opportunity to watch and learn from dentists in the community. Jimmy Miller, a fourth-year student said Give Kids a Smile Day was an excellent opportunity for him to talk with experienced practitioners, while also caring for those who truly need it most. A group of pre-dental students from the University of Houston also came to assist during the event.
Jennifer Cunningham, D.D.S., a pediatric dentist and alumna of the UT Dental Branch, was responsible for coordinating the area dentists throughout the organization.
Dental hygienist Susan Hayes, who works in Cunningham’s office, and her daughter, Jenny Hayes, an aspiring dental hygiene student, helped to educate and entertain children waiting in the lobby of the school. With oversized puppets and props, Susan demonstrated proper oral hygiene techniques to the small patients.
Jennifer Cunningham, D.D.S.,
a UTDB alumnus, examines a
child's x-ray. Cunningham
served as the coordinator of
the Greater Houston Dental
Society volunteer dentists who
worked the event.
Many thanks go to Dental Branch staff members Mary Ann Adkisson, Jon Coy, John O ’Black and Jonathan Green, who coordinated signage, supplies, equipment, food and other needs for the volunteers.
— Erika Hargrove, Dental Branch
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