Wadsworth Dental Center
(Health Delivery, Inc.)Saginaw, Michigan
It’s her first visit to a dental clinic.
But you would never know it watching and listening to 6-year-old Ti’Andra Jennings as she talks to dental hygiene student Jill Whiteside.
Dental Hygiene student Jill Whiteside shares a laugh with her 6–year–old patient, Ti’andra Jennings, as she explains how she will be be looking at her teeth and cleaning them.
After asking the youngster how often she brushes and what she usually eats and drinks, Whiteside looks at Ti’Andra’s teeth and begins cleaning them.
When she’s finished, Whiteside says, “I’m going to polish your teeth, but it may tickle.” As the polisher whirrs, Ti’Andra giggles. Whiteside pauses and jokingly says, “You’re ticklish, aren’t you?” Ti’Andra smiles and nods “yes.”
Whiteside then pulls floss from a small container and stretches the string between her two index fingers and shows Ti’Andra how to use it.
“We want University of Michigan dental school students to feel at home when they’re here, so we have photos from the U-M campus, signs, and pennants in several locations in our facility, including the operatories, says Dr. Robert Dennison”
Next, Whiteside places a lead apron over the youngster’s body and says, “I’m going to step back, press a button, and you’ll hear a buzzing sound. That’s the picture of your teeth being taken.” A few minutes later, Dr. Joel Hayden walks in and Whiteside tells him about her patient. As she gets up to leave, Whiteside gives Ti’Andra her new toothbrush and a tube of “sparkle” toothpaste.
“Do I get to take this home?” the youngster asks.
“Yes, absolutely,” Whiteside says. “Thank you for being such a great patient, Ti’Andra.”
The visit illustrates the rapport that often develops between patients who come to the Wadsworth Dental Center in Saginaw and their student providers from the U-M School of Dentistry.
Growing Demand for Care
The Center is one of two dental facilities run by Health Delivery, Inc. that serves more than 35,000 individuals in Saginaw, Bay, and 12 other mid-Michigan counties.
Dental assistant Amy Gonzalez (left) and fourth–year dental student Joan Anderson discuss how they will work together to help a patient that they are about to see at the Wadsworth Dental Center.
“The demand for dental services has increased significantly in recent years,” says Dr. Robert Dennison, dental director. “To meet that need, we increased our capacity and added elementary school-based programs.” An average of 70 patients, both those with appointments and walk-ins, are seen daily at Wadsworth.
Ravaged by the struggling auto industry and a decline in the number of area dentists treating patients who receive Medicaid benefits, Dennison says “many of our patients have nowhere else to go, so they come to us.”
The increased demand for oral health care and the U-M School of Dentistry’s outreach program “gives us and the School a great opportunity to meet our parallel goals.”
Dental and dental hygiene students provide care during one- to four-week rotations at Wadsworth. Residents in the Advanced Education in General Dentistry program offer care in nearby Bay City at the Bayside Health Center.
A Role Model
“They bring enthusiasm and fresh perspectives to us,” says Dr. Michael Campeau (DDS 2003). Born and raised in Saginaw, Campeau planned to enter private practice but changed his mind after his outreach experiences in his hometown a year earlier.
“I’m trying to be a role model for my community,” he says. “I feel good about what I’m doing because I know what I’m doing is worthwhile and making a difference.”
Hayden, another staff dentist, changed his career plans after spending six weeks at public health facilities in Michigan communities during his U-M AEGD residency from 2000 to 2001.
“The dental and dental hygiene students seem to need less help from us, and that’s great for them because they gain confidence that helps them to grow as clinicians,” he says.
Becky Demers, dental service manager, who has worked in both private practice and public health dentistry, perhaps best summarizes what Wadsworth means to the community.
“All of us – dental students, our dentists, and our staff – are making a difference,” she says. “I love what we’re doing and I know our patients do too because you see it in their smiles and hear it in their voices. I wish we could do more.”