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WOHC SPOTLIGHT
Marshfield Clinic/Family Health Center breaks ground on Rice Lake Dental Center
From left to right: Bradley Bekkum, MD, Marshfield Clinic Northwest
division medical director; Erik Stratman, MD, Marshfield Clinic,
director, Division of Education; Senator Robert Jauch; Rice Lake Mayor,
Dan Fitzgerald; Terri Kleutsch, Marshfield Clinic/FHC dental
administrator; David Samter, Family Health Center Board vice
president/treasurer; Representative Mary Hubler; Kim Cummings,
Marshfield Clinic dental program specialist; Congressman Dave Obey;
Dave Hemke, Family Health Center Board president; Greg Nycz, Family
Health Center executive director; Ned Wolf, Lakeview Medical Center CEO
The
Rice Lake Dental Center's groundbreaking ceremony highlighted key
partnerships with local, state and federal government to provide access
to dental care, to enhance economic development and to acknowledge work
done on the new facility.
Co-emcees
Greg Nycz, executive director, Family Health Center (FHC) of
Marshfield, Inc., and Terri Kleutsch, dental division administrator,
Marshfield Clinic/FHC Dental, acknowledged the many people who made the
event possible and the important role of the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act in bringing funding to this project.
Wisconsin's
7th Congressional District Congressman, Dave Obey, spoke at the dental
center groundbreaking, referencing the phrase, "think globally, act
locally," saying, "if people don't make things happen locally, there is
no impact nationally."
The new facility will be approximately
12,000 square feet. It will be located at 1501 W. Stout St. on the Rice
Lake medical campus, which includes Lakeview Medical Center and
Marshfield Clinic Rice Lake Center. Five dentists and five hygienists
will staff the facility. General dentistry services will include
preventive, restorative, operative, prosthodontics, endodontics,
diagnostic, oral surgery and emergency care. Construction is expected
to be completed in July 2010. Eppstein Uhen Architects of Madison is
overseeing the project.
"This
center will help our patients who currently travel great distances to
get quality dental care closer to home, increasing access for some of
the 24,939 low-income people without dental services in Barron and
surrounding counties," Kleutsch said. "We expect to serve 6,000
patients who will receive 16,000 services per year." Read more.
The
Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition thanks those
involved for their continued dedication to the oral
health access problem and credits them for the work and
progress they have already accomplished.
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WISCONSIN NEWS
Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile receives additional funding
The Wisconsin Division of
Public Health (DPH), in partnership with Children's Health Alliance of
Wisconsin, is pleased to announce an increase in funding for the
Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile program. A three-year Health Resources and
Services Administration (HRSA) workforce grant will increase funding
for school-based programs by $241,000. The funding will be used to
expand current programs and target high-risk children. Funding also
will provide $25,000 annual grants to Chippewa Valley Technical College
and Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program for school-based
dental sealant programs. The Alliance and DPH are currently reviewing
proposals and will award mini grants to programs soon. Delta
Dental of Wisconsin graciously has matched the $241,000 HRSA grant
for the next two years. Dennis Brown, president and CEO of Delta Dental
said, "Delta Dental has long advocated sealants as part of the coverage
offered under our group dental insurance plans. We also have a history
of providing charitable grants to organizations that increase the
availability of sealants to economically disadvantaged children." The
Alliance, Delta Dental and DPH are partnering together to implement
school-based care statewide. For more information on the availability
of funds, contact
Matt Crespin, oral health project manager with the Alliance.
Oral health education feasibility study
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has posted a
Request for Proposals (RFP) for an oral health education feasibility
study. The purpose of this project is to fulfill the requirements of
2009 Wisconsin Act 28, which directs the Building Commission to conduct
a study on the state's role in expanding access to dental education.
Particular emphasis is placed on increasing dental care in rural and
underserved areas, including examining the possibility of constructing
a new dental school in the city of Marshfield. Click here to view the RFP. Proposals are due December 1, 2009. For more information, email Marisa Stanley or call (608) 266-0463.
Special Olympics Special Smiles Volunteers Needed
Special
Olympics Wisconsin has teamed up with Delta Dental to provide free
dental screenings during a Healthy Athletes Special Smiles event.
Special Olympics athletes receive an oral health assessment, fluoride
varnish, mouth guards and tooth brushing and flossing education.
The
Healthy Athletes Special Smiles event will be held from 10:00 a.m. to
2:30 p.m. on Friday, December 4, 2009 at the Tommy Thompson Youth
Center, Wisconsin State Fairgrounds, 640 S. 84th Street, West Allis, Wisconsin. Event organizers are seeking volunteer dentists, dental hygienists and dental assistants.
To volunteer, email Kathleen Endres, Special Olympics Wisconsin's Special Smiles clinical director, or call (920) 470-1450.
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NATIONAL NEWS
UPDATE: School-based dental sealant recommendations
The Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) sponsored an expert work group meeting to
update recommendations for sealants used in school-based dental
sealant programs. A review of literature was performed and the
results echoed those which the American Dental Association's expert
panel released last February. The cover story from the most recent
Journal of the American Dental Association can be accessed here.
Health care reform and oral health
The
Pew Foundation recently released a document outlining those provisions
relating to H.R. 3962 Affordable Health Care for America Act. This
bill combines the work of three separate House committees, including
amendments, passed out of committee earlier this year (H.R.
2000). The provisions in this document are being tracked by the
Pew Children's Dental Campaign. Learn more.
Michigan woman's death from dental infection draws attention
A
woman with severe mental impairment died in northern Michigan this week
from a dental infection left untreated. The woman lost virtually all
oral health insurance coverage when the Adult Dental Medicaid Benefit
was eliminated by Executive Order and not restored in the new State
budget. As of July 1, only emergency treatment for dental extraction is
covered for people who qualify for the Adult Dental Medicaid Benefit.
The
Adult Dental Medicaid Benefit covers people with developmental
disabilities, physical disabilities, blindness, pregnant women and
older adults with very low incomes. The
woman, who required hospitalization to remove her infected teeth due to
her disabilities, was scheduled for surgery late in June, before the
cuts to the Adult Dental Medicaid Benefit were to take effect on July
1, 2009. The day her surgery was scheduled, doctors recommended
postponing the procedure until she recovered from a minor illness. By
then, she no longer had Medicaid coverage for the surgery. Learn more.
Healthy Smiles, Healthy Children (HSHC) announces new grant initiatives
The foundation of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) has recently announced new funding opportunities. The Access to Care Grants
provide matching/challenge grants to support local service initiatives that provide dental care to underserved children. Oral Health Research Grants are multi-year awards that are applied to research initiatives consistent with the AAPD's research agenda. The HSHC-AAPD Future Dental Researcher Fellowships
allow us to help develop the next generation of dental researchers by
investing in their careers. The deadline for these opportunities
is December 31, 2009. Learn More.
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WOHC NEWS
First WOHC regional meeting to be held in Eau Claire
The
WOHC is hosting a series of regional meetings over the next year, and
we are pleased to invite you to the first meeting of the series to be
held December 9, 2009. Successes, Gaps and Resources will
provide a venue for discussion on issues surrounding oral health access
within the region. Partners and those interested in addressing
solutions for oral health access from around the state are invited to
participate.
The three focus areas of the meeting will be to:
Highlight
programs that have successfully improved oral health within the region
and share best practices conducted statewide that could be replicated
regionally.
- Address gaps in accessing oral health care within the region and possible solutions for improvement.
- Share resources available regionally to help improve access to oral health services.
For more information please contact Matt Crespin, or download the registration form and sign up today to attend.
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