From the #deltadentalARFoundation: At Wakefield Elementary School in Little Rock, taking good care of your teeth is part of a regular school day. The students receive instructions about proper brushing, flossing and healthy eating, and if they need to see a dentist, they can just walk down the hall. 

Future Smiles Dental Health Clinic opened in 2004 as the first school-based dental clinic in Arkansas. To date, it has provided more than $3 million worth of preventive and restorative dental services, plus oral health education, to thousands of K-12 students from low-income families. It also inspired at least one student to seek a career in dentistry. 

A Children International- UA Little Rock project, Future Smiles serves as the dental home for about 1,200 students from the Little Rock School District each year who don’t have private dental insurance. To make sure students don’t miss appointments for lack of transportation, bus service is available.

The dental care is provided by a rotating staff from Arkansas Children’s Hospital, UAMS, the AR Department of Health and UA Pulaski Technical College. Medicaid, grants and donations, including a #communitygrant from the Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation, pay for the services.

“It’s all about providing access to oral health care by taking the services directly to the populations in need,” said Ryan Davis, Children International director. 

For many students, a visit to Future Smiles is their first time to see a dentist. But not the last. The clinic is set up to serve as their dental home all through elementary and secondary school.

Or even beyond. 

Davis mentioned one particular student, the daughter of undocumented immigrants. The years of dental care she received at Future Smiles prompted her to train as a dental assistant after high school graduation. Now she intends to use her professional skills to help make oral health care more accessible throughout her community. 

Wow. We’re all about helping non-profits, schools and communities make oral health care accessible to Arkansans. Check out our grant opportunities here. 

 

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