This is the fourth year UNMC College of Dentistry students have traveled to the Panhandle to offer free dental services to children.  200 children received a variety of services including cleanings, fluoride treatments, sealants, and cavity fillings in Alliance, Chadron, Gordon, and Sidney.  In addition to the personal visits for youth to area dental offices, Dental Day professionals were able to consult with UNMC specialists via the telehealth network.

Often, the reason children do not receive dental screenings isn’t lack of concern for good oral hygiene, said Kim Engel, director of Panhandle Public Health District. More often, children in rural American do not have insurance for dental care.

Uninsured residents of the Panhandle rank second highest in the state at 18.4%, which is significantly higher than the 11.7% for the entire state. “Good insurance includes good dental coverage,” Engel said. Dental care is the most common unmet treatment in children according to a state report on oral health among 3^rd graders “Tooth decay can be prevented by a balanced diet, good dental hygiene, regular visits to the dentist, the use of fluoride, and dental sealants,” Engel said.

Dentists who participated in the Dental Day X include Donald Taylor, Jr. DDS, Paul Maxwell, DDS and Gene Giles, DDS of Alliance, Sam Jacoby, DDS, Bridgeport, Tim Jensen DDS, Oshkosh, Bill Printz, DDS, Michael Neal, DDS, and Melanie Kroft, DDS of Sidney, Travis Lambert, DDS and Terry Owens, DDS of Chadron, In addition, Gordon Memorial Hospital and Chadron Community Hospital provided sites for portable dental chairs and Box Butte General Hospital was a site for surgeries.  All of these resources were provided without charge to the families.

Sponsors and Participants in Panhandle Dental Day 2007

Many organizations, institutions, companies, and individuals made Dental Day 2007 a reality, including these: UNMC College of Dentistry; Nebraska Health and Human Services System; Box Butte General Hospital; Gordon Memorial Hospital; Chadron Community Hospital and Prairie Pines Lodge; area dentists and dental hygienists; Western Community Health Resources; Health Professions Club members, Cover Jones and Wahlstrom Ford; Pepsi Distributing Company; RSVP; Panhandle Public Health District; and nurses and concerned individuals from across the Panhandle.