We are grateful for our community partners across the nation! Leaving a legacy and improving access to oral health care for future generations, means ensuring that our doctors in training are educated on oral health care inequities and enticing them to give back in their future careers!
We are excited to share that we have partnered with the Student National Dental Association at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry and the Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine, to promote Public Health Dentistry. Though preventable, dental disease is the leading epidemic among low income families in the US, disproportionately affecting minority and low income children. Increasing and diversifying the dental workforce in underserved areas is a priority for ensuring that equitable access to care is attained.
In February, when National Children’s Dental Health Month coincides with Black History Month, we hosted powerful screenings of our oral health documentary Toothache: The Painful Truth About Oral Health Care Inequity at the school.
Through meaningful and engaging conversations with first to fourth year dental students, we told them our own stories and experiences that led us into the field, and raised awareness about the critical need for more public health providers, focusing on Public Health Dentistry as an appealing, respected, and integrated specialty.
KinderSmile Foundation will forever advocate for the next generation of dentists to include more public health providers, ensuring a legacy of equitable access to care for all. We are always excited to speak with students, promote public health dentistry, and mentor young professionals, as we need more providers who are willing to give back and serve the communities that need us most, ultimately helping to bridge the gap in access to oral health care.
Stay tuned for which dental school we go to next!
In the photos, Dr. Nicole McGrath-Barnes, Founder and CEO of KinderSmile Foundation, and Dr. Michal Herman, COO of KinderSmile Foundation, along with Dr. Dunham of BUSDM and D1-D4 students at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry and the Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine
