Realities from the Road: Burns Flat (Washita County)

Site Partner: 

Burns Flat Church of Christ

May 31, 2013

Patient Stats:

• 35 patients pre-screened – total value of $1,293

• 10 patients treated at a value of $2,556

• Teeth extracted – 26

• Volunteers – Pre-screeners Julie Nabors, RDH and Kelly Pease, RDH both from Weatherford, RDH; Dr. Adam Cohlmia of OKC provided treatment

MobileSmiles visited Burns Flat church of Christ for the first time at the end of May. We were originally scheduled for two days, but had to cancel one due to lack of available volunteers. Thankfully, Dr. Adam Cohlmia was available the second day and volunteered his time with us. 

Here’s how he summed up the day:

Dr. Adam Cohlmia

“Patients seemed to be pretty underserved or completely underserved populations. I don’t know how important oral hygiene is or how important dental education is in that community. As far as the cities I’ve volunteered with in this program, it was definitely one in most need. Patients (including children) had decayed teeth below the gum and some to the nerve.”

However, the patients and people of Burns Flat made a lasting impression.

“These patients were some of the most thankful people I’ve seen on the mobile unit. They were very friendly to us.”

Dr. Cohlmia considers this group’s barrier to dental care to be financial. The patients were very low incomes – most household incomes for 4-5 people were less than $20,000 annually. Of the 10 patients seen that day, only one person had insurance. 

From the Mouths of Patients:

 “One little girl seemed terrified the whole time during her treatment, then when it was over, she thanked us and asked us to come over to her house to hang out afterwards! She ended up being really happy she got her tooth pulled and took a liking to us.”

Other Notes:

“Driving home was kinda fun. I was headed to Norman on Highway 152 and saw all the tornadoes form north of me and listened to it on the radio.” 

Thankfully, the mobile unit also made it home safety, albeit very late, but drove through El Reno after the tornado passed though. Our Community Coordinator Steve Hudson took this photo as he was headed east on I-40. Our thoughts and prayers are again with those who were affected by the largest tornado ever recorded. As you can see from this photo, destruction

ODF In the News

Friday, October 19 was an exciting day for our program. KFOR-TV's Lance West paid us a visit while we were at the Baptist Mission in Oklahoma City treating low-income adults. This segment aired twice that evening, and we could have asked for a better platform for our program! Lance tells the story of so many Oklahomans who are in need of care, even in metro areas, but cannot access it. In this instance, the barrier to oral health care is finances. We are so pleased we make a trip to the Baptist Mission again and help their clients improve their chance for job prospects and better, brighter futures.

We are also so grateful to our dental professional staff and volunteers who see this program and an important means to end suffering in our state. This particular day Drs. Eric Touet (Oklahoma City) and Phoebe Brown (Edmond) were able to improve the quality of life to so many. To put it simply, the visit wouldn't be possible without them, or any of our volunteers!

Because the segment aired during the evening news, our office was bombarded with phone calls and emails asking for appointments or when the mobile unit would be near them. Clearly, there is still a great need, and we are always seeking new sites to visit. If you know of a new one we should check out let us know!

We hope you'll take a minute to watch this video and share our program with those you know who may need help, or those who may be interested in volunteering their time with our program.

ODF & OUCOD impact OKC Mid-High School

What does a community engaged in overall health look like? This is the question Douglass Mid-High School in Oklahoma City asked when it brought together like-minded health groups for a meeting last spring. Among those groups were the Oklahoma Dental Foundation, and the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry’s Community Dentistry department. The school’s principal, Dr. Brian Staples, with the assistance of Sandridge Energy, wanted to develop an in-school health center to create better habits for students. Staples attributes a majority of student absences to preventable health conditions, including tooth aches and abscessed caused by severe cavities. Missed class periods for this school, a primarily low-income, African American population means missed opportunities for a better, brighter future. 

July 27, 2012 began the first step of implementing this partnership and impacting the oral health of Douglass. Several volunteers and students from the OUCOD provided dental screenings during a back to school lock-in. The screening would let parents know any problems areas the child might have, and well as, tips for brushing and flossing. About 30 screenings were done that night with the permission of parents in attendance.

The next step came on October 12, 2012 – a day of screenings for more than 150 students. Much preparation went into finding volunteer dental students, implementing a strategy as to see as many students as quickly as possible while engaging them in taking ownership of their oral health. While we had high hopes in preparation, middle and high school aged kids have a way of taking your plan and throwing it by the wayside. By 9:30 a.m. that morning, the first group of kids had come through. As anticipated, many were not interested in volunteering to be screened. The OUCOD group quickly regrouped and found a different plan of attack. Every student would receive a screening by a fourth year student, then brushing and flossing instructions would be given by first and second year dental students. When the second round of Douglass students came through, tensions eased and the screenings ran smoother. Once students were screened, their forms were generated into two piles: referrals to the mobile dental unit for further treatment, and those who didn’t need treatment. Of the 151 screenings completed that day,  83 students were referred for further dental treatment and given paperwork for their parents to authorize treatment on the Oklahoma Dental Foundation’s mobile dental unit October 29 through 31.

Sydney Sevier, senior program assistant in the OUCOD’s Community Dentistry department described the experience as eye opening and a good perspective for the dental students to have. “I think this really sparked an extra passion. They spread the word for their friends to get involved because of what a good experience they had,” Sevier said. “I think this made them realize how bad the problem is in the community.” The Community Dentistry’s overall goal is to increase the number of graduating dental students who go into community dentistry across the state.

Second year dental student Sneha Patel was shocked to hear from a middle school student receiving a screening who did not know what a cavity was. “He seemed very worried about his mouth, but didn't know how to take care of it,” Patel said. She explained to the student that the cavity was treatable and how to prevent them in the future.

Our next challenge will come October 29 when the ODF mobile dental unit and OU students return to Douglass for dental treatment. As always, parents need to authorize the proper paperwork for minors to receive dental care. We hope parents who have seen their child’s screening form take a few minutes to save their children pain and suffering over a toothache, and their pocketbooks from a trip to the emergency room.

Hot off the Presses!

It's been eight days now since we treated our 10,000th patient through the mobile dental program, and we were thrilled so many news outlets in the Oklahoma City Metro were interested in covering our milestone!

Reporters from KOCO, KFOR, KWTV, Telemundo and Journal Record were all in attendance and did a great job in capturing our program and the day's special occasion. Below are a few of the published articles.

Article from The Journal Record - Published September 7

Mobile dental unit serves 10,000th patient

By Sarah Terry-Cobo

OKLAHOMA CITY – Dafne Soto had molars extracted in the parking lot of the Latino Community Development Agency on Thursday. The 8-year-old was the 10,000th patient seen in the Oklahoma Dental Foundation’s mobile unit,  a converted recreational vehicle.

Bernice Saldana, Soto’s mother, had noticed her daughter’s cavities, but said she didn’t have dental insurance to cover the necessary treatment.

“This is a great help for us,” Saldana said in Spanish.

Saldanda’s 4-year-old son, Ricardo, was also treated at the mobile clinic on Thursday.

The Soto children are among thousands of people living in the metro area who aren’t covered by dental insurance.

Saldana said she is glad she can bring her children to get free dental care, saving her family hundreds of dollars. Even though there are 449 dentists licensed to work in Oklahoma City and 664 licensed to work in Oklahoma County, John Gladden, president and CEO of Delta Dental of Oklahoma, said many residents lack access to dental care, not just those who live in rural areas.

“It wouldn’t matter if there was a dentist on every corner,” he said. “If parents don’t take their children, they won’t go.”

Delta Dental of Oklahoma Oral Health Foundation, a nonprofit organization, has donated about $250,000 for the creation of the mobile dental unit, which has been in operation since 2006.

John Wilguess, executive director of the Oklahoma Dental Foundation, said that the majority of their patients have low incomes. In 2011, nearly a third of patients had a household income of $10,000 or less and about 70 percent had a household income of less than $20,000. Only 35 percent of the patients said they qualified for Medicaid, Wilguess said.

The need for the mobile dental unit is so great in the state that the Oklahoma Dental Foundation’s board has approved the purchase od a new unit tha tiwll be custom-built. Having a second unit that can travel from town to town will allow the original unit to stay in one place for several days, Wilguess said. That will allow dentists to perform follow-up visits on their patients, which are often necessary, he said. 

Article from Edmond Life & Leisure - Published September 13

Dentist from Edmomd part of Milestone

Helping the 10,000th patient

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Dental Foundation Mobile Dental Unit has provided free dental care to more than 10,000 patients as of Sept. 6. Dafne Soto, 8, of Oklahoma City was the honored 10,000th patient served on the mobile unit as it made a stop at the Latino Community Development Agency. Soto was one of eight children and youth who had an appointment for needed dental care Thursday.

The mobile dental unit travels across the state each year as part of ODF’s Mobile Dental Care Program.

“She didn’t know she was going to be the 10,000th patient,” said Berenice Saldana, Soto’s mother. “It was a surprise, but she’s happy. She enjoyed it.”

Saldana said her daughter needed care for cavities that were causing her back teeth to crumble, but Saldana is a single mother of three children and does not have insurance.

“It is very beneficial for my family to be able to come here and receive free care on the mobile dental unit,” Saldana said.

 The Oklahoma Dental Foundation began the mobile dental care program in 2006 using volunteer dentists. Since that time, Delta Dental of Oklahoma Oral Health Foundation has supported the program with nearly $1 million in grants. Part of that funding has allowed the program to double its reach by paying for contract dentists to go to rural areas where access to care is especially low and to provide services during weekdays when volunteers are unavailable.

 “When I first began treating dental patients on the mobile unit, I thought the cost of dental care was the only barrier,” said Jeannie Bath, the dentist on site Sept. 6. “But driving out to a rural site, I think of our patients driving those same long, lonely Oklahoma roads back toward town for their needed dental care. 

“Having the ability to address urgent and potential emergency infections on the mobile dental unit, allows us to prevent patients without a dentist from seeking temporary relief for that infection in the ER.”

OKMOM 2010 Is History!

The first Oklahoma Mission of Mercy is over, the portable chairs are off to another state, the mobile dental unit is back in its home. More than $850,000 in free dental work was performed Friday and Saturday at the Tulsa Convention Center. 1,800 people benefitted from the two-day event.

I don't know about the rest of the volunteers, but my feet hurt! It was worth the 3:00a.m. wake up calls on Friday and Saturday and the very long days.

The 2011 OKMOM will be held in Oklahoma City. I think a lot was learned at this event and the next one will go even more smoothly. Kudos to everyone involved!




Dental assistant Kimberly Kennedy and Dr. Justin Beasley work on a patient in the Tulsa Convention Center during the Oklahoma Mission of Mercy on Friday.

Photo from the Tulsa World.

What do ice and snow and a winnebago have in common? Nothing!!

Ice and snow and a dental office on wheels do not mix! The mobile dental unit is on its way to Woodward today for an event coordinated by Dr. Teri White. Thank you Dr. White and staff for putting all the hard work into serving your community. Hopefully the Winnebago can get back to OKC and tucked into its warm storage place late tonight before the next winter storm hits.

Remember you can see all of our volunteer opportunities from Volunteer Squared. And if, like Dr. White, you have something specific in mind for your community, just give us a call at 405-241-1299 to talk it over.

Hope to see many of you at the Oklahoma Mission of Mercy on February 5&6!

New Year, new stuff

Can I just say I get excited about things like new tires on the Mobile Dental Van? Having a flat tire in the dark, in the middle of the countryside does not make me a happy camper. So the gift of four new tires makes me happy!! We also got a new radio the replace the one that got fried for some unknown reason, a new arrangement up front in the "reception" area, a new computer, and, tah dah! A Nomad portable x-ray unit. Many thanks to Delta Dental of Oklahoma for funding those much-needed improvements.

It's because of your support and volunteerism plus the funding from Delta Dental that we were able to see exponentially more patients in the last four months of 2009. Look at these numbers!

SOTC in Ardmore

The Hygiene students at Southern Oklahoma Technology Center hosted the Mobile Dental Van for the day on Saturday, November 21st. They did an outstanding job of preparing for the day and keeping things running smoothly.

This little guy was talking non-stop until I turned on the video...then it's was all shyness.

What does Dr. Beasley, Pete's Place and great ideas have in common?

Here's an idea for a staff outing. Pick a part of the state you think would be fun to visit, recruit your staff by offering them dinner out after volunteering on the mobile dental van, and give us a call. That's exactly what Dr. Justin Beasley did last Friday. Pete's Place in Krebs was his ultimate destination and he brought along hygienist Patti Jones, assistant Kim Kennedy, and staff member Shirley Arnn. The Caring Hands Community Clinic in McAlester benefited from their good work. Thanks to all for their willingness to travel. I just hope they ordered the toasted ravioli.