Program Details

Objectives of this program include:

• Reduce the proportion of children and adolescents with untreated decay
  
  
• Reduce the proportion of children who have dental caries in their primary or permanent teeth by use of sealants and fluoride supplements
  
  
• Increase the proportion of children who have received dental sealants on their molars
  
  
• Decrease periodontal disease
  
  
• Increase the proportion of children and adults who access the oral health system each year
  
  
• Increase the proportion of low-income children and adults who access the oral health system each year
  
  

In addition to community access, the mobile dental van provides dental care to the low-income population through the School-Based Dental Clinic and Article 28 dental clinic. Children that would have gone without dental care due to transportation, insurance or financial barriers now have the dental office come to them. The mobile dental program?s School-Based Dental Clinic is available for students without a dental home regardless of insurance or lack of insurance. Students are scheduled for half-hour appointments and receive a dental exam, prophy, fluoride treatment, radiographs and if needed, restorative care including fillings. The Article 28 dental clinic is available to the community when the dental van is not serving school students. The Article 28 clinic accepts all insurances and utilizes a sliding fee scale for Article 28 visits.

This practice can be viewed as innovative right from the start. A collaboration of efforts between the Tioga County Health Department and the Rural Economic Area Partnership (REAP) helped to secure the funding. The Small Cities Block Grant was an untraditional funding source for a dental program. The concept of a dental office with wheels is extraordinary but to operate it has both a School-Based Dental Clinic and an Article 28 Dental Clinic is what makes it truly unique.

Regulations that were typically followed in reference to fixed dental clinics, were difficult to apply to the mobile dental office. A State Environmental Quality Review had to be completed. Topics such as disposal of waste water, division of clean and dirty areas in a small sterilization room, access to a bathroom for staff and patients, access to a phone and barriers to billing were a few of the issues to be overcome.

Other dental programs were primarily limited to preventative services and did not bill insurances. This practice intends to be self-sustaining and relies on the ability to bill. To do so the practice had to be designated as an Article 28 Clinic and to serve the school students, it also had to be a School-Based Dental Clinic. These designations also brought regulations, which had to be applied to a unique project.

Community partners from multiple disciplines play an important role on the Quality Assurance/Record Review Committee and on the Medical Advisory Committee. The Mobile Dental Program also works with local medical offices and other agencies in providing information on oral health and the services of the dental van. Tioga County schools provide hook-ups for the dental van, which includes electric, water and waste water disposal. The Mobile Dental Program works closely with Tioga County Headstart to provide students with a dental exam, prophy and fluoride treatment. The Office for the Aging has provided hook-ups at their community center for community access, including senior citizens.

In addition to community access, the mobile dental van provides dental care to the low-income population through the School-Based Dental Clinic and Article 28 dental clinic. Children that would have gone without dental care due to transportation, insurance or financial barriers now have the dental office come to them. The mobile dental program?s School-Based Dental Clinic is available for students without a dental home regardless of insurance or lack of insurance. Students are scheduled for half-hour appointments and receive a dental exam, prophy, fluoride treatment, radiographs and if needed, restorative care including fillings. The Article 28 dental clinic is available to the community when the dental van is not serving school students. The Article 28 clinic accepts all insurances and utilizes a sliding fee scale for Article 28 visits.

This practice can be viewed as innovative right from the start. A collaboration of efforts between the Tioga County Health Department and the Rural Economic Area Partnership (REAP) helped to secure the funding. The Small Cities Block Grant was an untraditional funding source for a dental program. The concept of a dental office with wheels is extraordinary but to operate it has both a School-Based Dental Clinic and an Article 28 Dental Clinic is what makes it truly unique.

Regulations that were typically followed in reference to fixed dental clinics, were difficult to apply to the mobile dental office. A State Environmental Quality Review had to be completed. Topics such as disposal of waste water, division of clean and dirty areas in a small sterilization room, access to a bathroom for staff and patients, access to a phone and barriers to billing were a few of the issues to be overcome.

Other dental programs were primarily limited to preventative services and did not bill insurances. This practice intends to be self-sustaining and relies on the ability to bill. To do so the practice had to be designated as an Article 28 Clinic and to serve the school students, it also had to be a School-Based Dental Clinic. These designations also brought regulations, which had to be applied to a unique project.