Making smiles over miles
Posted: September 17, 2010
ASDOH student Marjan Nejad pictured with Fred Martinez outside the Smiles over Miles vehicle donated by the BHHS Legacy Foundation.
Thanks to the BHHS Legacy Foundation, ATSU-ASDOH students Marjan Nejad and John Antonio provide dental care to the disabled where they need it most- at their residential facility.
While residents waited patiently in the hallway to see a dentist for the first time in several years, ASDOH fourth year student dentists Marjan Nejad and John E. Antonio, Jr. got ready for an exciting learning opportunity.
Nejad and Antonio provided free dental screenings for 23 elderly and disabled individuals at the Salvation Army’s Laura Danieli Senior Center in downtown Phoenix on August 31. The screenings were part of ASDOH’s Smiles over Miles program that provides care for elderly and disabled individuals at centralized locations.
“Typically, our residents suffer through dental pain as many don’t have funds to see a dentist,” said Lana Remmers, activity director at the Senior Center. And, for residents like 85-year-old Fred Martinez, this came as an opportunity to get a free dental consultation. “I can’t even remember the last time I saw a dentist,” he said. Seven years ago, a bad toothache forced Martinez to tell a dentist “to pull the tooth out rather than do any work on it” as he had no funds to pay for care. Martinez had served in the U.S. Navy from 1942 until 1953.
ASDOH has funded the Smiles over Miles dental screenings through its own internal resources. However, transportation to the facility was made possible through a vehicle generously donated by the BHHS Legacy Foundation.
“I am grateful for any help somewhere for me,” said Dorothy Buxton, an elderly cancer survivor who had to put off dental care as “my teeth had to wait while I took care of other things.” Buxton couldn’t afford the $250 follow up dental treatment she needed, and was grateful for the complimentary dental screenings that will help her figure out “what step to take next.”
ASDOH expects to follow up on these patients and will rely on community resources to provide care for patients who need them urgently. “I wish we could offer this service to our residents at least once a month,” Remmers said.