Maurizio Sandra J, DeMattei Ronda, Meyer Jennifer, Cotner Danna
Dental Hygiene Program, Department of Health Care Professions, College of Applied Sciences and Arts, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, USA.
J Dent Hyg. 2003 Summer;77(3):185-9.
Few dentists in a rural Midwestern community participate in providing oral health care to public aid recipients. In response, faculty at a baccalaureate degree dental hygiene program located at Southern illinois University, Carbondale (SIUC) proposed, developed, and implemented the Heartland Dental Clinic to serve Medicaid participants. The unique program utilizes existing facilities, staff, and students to provide comprehensive oral health care to underserved populations. The state awarded a small grant to cover start-up costs. Two dental units were upgraded with fiber optics to allow restorative procedures. Dental hygiene students provide intake examinations and preventive care, while a staff dentist provides restorative care, dentures, and examinations. Dental technology students and faculty fabricate prostheses. A part-time clinic manager facilitates communication, patient scheduling, and billing. Two local Rotary Club members volunteer as receptionists for the clinic on the one evening per week that the clinic operates. The Rotary Club purchased educational pamphlets, a television/VCR, videotapes, and two signs for the clinic. By locating the clinic in the existing SIUC facility and utilizing dental hygiene students, a staff dentist, volunteer receptionists and dentists, student workers, and health care management interns, the clinic overhead costs have been kept to a minimum. The clinic provides a unique opportunity for dental hygiene students to experience firsthand scheduling, billing, and treating public aid patients while providing patients with an additional source for oral health care. The Heartland Dental Clinic model represents a cost effective method for increasing oral health access to underserved populations while also benefiting students in an educational program.
美国中西部农村社区中，很少有牙医参与为公共援助受助者提供口腔医疗服务。作为回应，位于南伊利诺伊大学卡本代尔分校（SIUC）的一个学士学位牙科保健项目的教员们提议、开发并实施了心脏地带牙科诊所，为医疗补助计划参与者提供服务。这个独特的项目利用现有的设施、员工和学生，为服务不足的人群提供全面的口腔医疗服务。该州提供了一笔小额赠款来支付启动成本。两个牙科单元进行了光纤升级，以允许进行修复手术。牙科保健专业的学生进行初诊检查和预防护理，而一名在职牙医提供修复护理、假牙制作和检查。牙科技术专业的学生和教员制作假体。一名兼职诊所经理负责促进沟通、患者预约和计费工作。每周诊所运营的一个晚上，当地两名扶轮社成员自愿担任诊所接待员。扶轮社为诊所购买了教育宣传册、一台电视/录像机、录像带以及两块指示牌。通过将诊所设在现有的SIUC设施内，并利用牙科保健专业的学生、一名在职牙医、志愿接待员和牙医、学生工以及医疗保健管理实习生，诊所的运营成本被控制到了最低限度。该诊所为牙科保健专业的学生提供了一个独特的机会，让他们能够亲身体验安排日程、计费以及治疗公共援助患者的过程，同时也为患者提供了另一个口腔医疗服务来源。心脏地带牙科诊所模式是一种经济有效的方法，既能增加服务不足人群获得口腔医疗服务的机会，又能使学生在教育项目中受益。
