More than 16 hours before doors open, organizers estimate that about a dozen people will line up to receive free dental care in Arkadelphia at the Arkansas Mission of Mercy dental clinic Friday and Saturday.
And by the time the clinic rings in its seventh year providing free tooth extractions, cleanings and fillings to the needy at 6 a.m. Friday, more than 850 people will be waiting for their turn, organizers believe. The clinic, sponsored by the Wal-Mart Foundation and Delta Dental of Arkansas, among others,should serve about 2,000 people this year at Henderson State University.
About 900 volunteers, including more than 150 licensed dentists, will serve patients in the university’s Duke Wells Center, a sports complex the size of a basketball court. The site preparation began Wednesday morning and includes setting up 120 dental stations.
“As usual, it’s organized chaos,” Dr. Terry Fiddler, the clinic’s executive director, said over the phone during setup Wednesday afternoon. “This gymnasium will be packed wall-to-wall.”
The clinic’s primary focus is helping patients who are in pain, coordinator Drew Ramey said.
Volunteers will provide dental services to low-income, rural and elderly patients who travel from all parts of Arkansas for the opportunity. Some haven’t had a dental check-up in years. Others have resorted to extracting their own teeth to deal with pain. On the same note, dentists travel from all over the state and from other states to help out.
“This is mission work,” Fiddler said. “It just happens to be in Arkansas.”
Arkansans are in greater need of free dental services than are most Americans, according to public health data.About 1,200 dentists practice in Arkansas, but about more than half of them practice in eight of its 75 counties, according to a 2010 data compiled in an Arkansas Office of Oral Health report. A 2009 University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences report ranked Arkansas 50th in the country for dental access. And Arkansas has no schools for dentistry, although the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences is establishing such a program.
But more dentists isn’t necessarily the answer, Ramey said. Many Arkansans lack dental coverage on their health insurance, he said, or they treat their teeth the way they treat their cars: They only see a professional when they have to.
“A lot of people live out in the nether lands,” he said. “They have to make choices about what they go to town for.”
Fiddler agreed that the disparity comes down to priorities. Many Arkansans simply choose to forgo dental care, he said.
“I’ve been trying to do it for 40 years,” Fiddler said. “You can’t make them understand that their entire health is dependent on their mouth.”
Ramey said the dental clinic - along with efforts to establish dental schools and increase access to care - is just another piece of the puzzle that is dental care in Arkansas.
“It’s not a problem you ever solve,” he said. “It’s one you manage.”
For the first time, Arkansas Department of Human Services workers will be at the clinic to provide information on SNAP, the federally funded nutrition assistance program. One or two workers will distribute information on the program and help eligible low-income and elderly individuals fill out the necessary paperwork.
“You don’t often get a chance to be in a place where the people you’re trying to reach out to are all in the same place at the same time,” said Amy Webb, the department’s spokesman. “This is a valuable opportunity for us to reach out to those who really could be struggling.”
The state dental association organizes the clinic every year. It’s donated about $5.4 million of dental care, including more than 20,300 extractions and 8,700 fillings - all going toward more than 10,500 patients served. Next year’s clinic will be in Springdale.
Fiddler and Ramey encouraged patients to arrive early and prepare for a wait.
“Since you were a kid, you’ve always heard people say, ‘I hate going to the dentist.’ No one told these folks that,” Fiddler said. “They love to come to the dentist.”
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 05/30/2013