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| Erika Torres looks on as Dr. William Morrell works on her daughter Clarissa |
Erika Torres was beyond grateful to have her three children, ages 3, 6 and 16, receive free dental care on a cold, rainy day in March when she brought them to the Give Kids A Smile event at Salt Lake Community College's dental hygiene clinic. Her three-year-old daughter Clarissa dutifully opened her mouth wide as a proud mother took photos on her phone.
“This is nice, because sometimes we don’t have enough money to get this for all three children,” Torres said. “I think it’s awesome. This is a great team. They’re doing such a great job, and everyone is so nice and friendly.”
The Saturday event at SLCC’s Jordan Campus provided free dental care for 12 children in each of the three two-hour sessions offered throughout the day at the school’s huge clinic and training facility. The company Hu-Friedy donated all of the supplies that dentists and hygienists needed to perform their work as well as lunches for the volunteers. Children participating in the event attend Title 1 schools in the West Jordan area and come from low-income families.
Renee Mendenhall, program coordinator for SLCC’s dental hygiene program, and several faculty members visited their students as they worked and passed off on certain clinical skills while also receiving credit for community service hours. About 40 SLCC students volunteered their time, along with 10 faculty and staff members and three doctors. The need for an event like this, she said, is “unbelievable,” and families leave the clinic with vouchers for follow-up care with dentists in their community. “It’s a really big event for our program,” Mendenhall said. “The students are really excited about.” From January to April and then September to December, the facility at SLCC continually offers low-cost dental cleaning by appointment or when students on their own bring in patients. Mendenhall added, "A lot of people don’t realize we have a clinic here."
Kristen Hall, a second-year dental hygiene coordinator for SLCC, led organizing the event, employing strict COVID-19 protocols and providing plenty of protective gear as students worked on patients, some with advanced gum disease or severe tooth decay or sometimes in pain because of their dental issues. They are often uninsured, and their parents might not have enough funds to provide dental care for their children. Dr. William Morrell, an adjunct dental hygiene faculty member at SLCC, said one commonality most families share is a lack of knowledge about good dental practices and understanding the importance of regular checkups. “Education is a big part of these events,” Morrell said, “more for the parents than the kids.”
Launched in 2003 by the American Dental Association, the annual Give Kids A Smile program donates screenings, preventative and restorative treatments as well as free oral health education to more than 300,000 children at events in February and March across the country. Each year about 6,500 dentists and 30,000 dental team members volunteer their time and services at these events. Since its inception, more than six million underserved children have received free dental services through the program.
One of those children, Robert Arias, whose mother is from the Dominican Republic, was looking forward to having a birthday celebration the following day after the clinic at SLCC. With an eight birthday just hours away, young Robert said he wanted for nothing, except maybe a surprise or two. He for sure will have had clean teeth for the big day.
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