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Opening Access to Care
Oral Health
The Need
Powerful evidence of the need for oral health services, outreach and education came from an outreach dental program provided by CCNTR and Health First Family Care Center to the elementary schools in the Twin Rivers three school districts. This program found that 50% of children seen in the outreach dental program had high to moderate levels of decay and had not previously been seen by a dentist.
Actions
The original outreach program provided access to an in-school cleaning and exam by a dental hygienist, for all first and third graders. In the same year the program provided $15,000.00 worth of restorative dental work to children who were uninsured. CCNTR and LRGHealthcare applied for and received designation for the Twin Rivers and Laconia area as dental health provider shortage areas. Dental prevention outreach and restorative care, at low or no cost to children and adults, is now provided at a new dental operatory in Laconia. This facility is staffed through a cooperative arrangement with Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Transportation to the clinic is provided for people from the Twin Rivers region. Patients are referred to dental professionals who are under contract with Health First Family Care to accept set payment for screening and restorative services. It is the primary goal of this program to increase recruitment of dentists to the region and to encourage them to establish practices here. The program will also increase and promote access to dental care for individuals with Medicaid, the working poor, underinsured and uninsured.
Involvement
CCNTR cross-agency care coordination teams provide outreach and referral to children in need of dental hygiene. In-school screening staff also refer children to the Laconia Dental Clinic. Families receive information about the dental program at the beginning of the school year or when they enroll a child in the district. The dental operatory and in-school exam program is funded by an Endowment for Health Grant, a State of NH Grant, local Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs, LRGHealthcare, and with support of local dental professionals.
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