WHAT: National “Give Kids A Smile” event in conjunction with National Dental Health Month, an annual event that provides dental screening and treatment for the underserved children of North Texas. “Give Kids a Smile” is a signature cause of the North Texas Dental Society.
WHO: Over 200 underserved children in the North Texas Dental Society communities who are currently in elementary or Middle School. The GKAS program is only available to children in need who because of financial limitations are unable to access dental care through traditional private practice facilities. In order to qualify, the parents of these children must demonstrate such need through their participating schools. Local school nurses have agreed to assist in the identification and enrollment of underserved children in their schools. Guidelines for qualification can be obtained through their offices.
WHEN: February, in conjunction with the National GKAS day and National Dental Health Month. Follow up care is provided through the end of April 2012.
WHERE: There are two phases to the NTDS – GKAS event. The first is a cleaning and screening day at two locations, Collin College Dental Hygiene Center and the Texas Women’s University Dental Hygiene Center. The second phase is completed in the offices of volunteer dentists.
INFORMATION FOR THE DENTIST:
We hope to once again provide needed dental care to over 200 underserved children who have demonstrated an inability to receive care through the traditional private practice system. To accomplish this we need you, the NTDS member-doctors, to step up and volunteer your services! The talents and skills of all our member-doctors, including specialists, are critical to the success of GKAS.
General dentists are being asked to treat 4-8 patients in their offices during the months of February to April, 2012. Children will be selected by their school nurses according to dental need. All qualified children will have been carefully screened. Their parents will be required to fill out patient registration forms and releases for treatment prior to assignment to a local volunteer doctor.
The GKAS Committee will create a patient chart for each patient, and have them distributed to your office. It is the responsibility of the volunteer doctor to contact the parents of each assigned GKAS patient directly to schedule an appointment for treatment.
We are asking general dentists to serve as primary caregivers, and we are recruiting specialists to be available for specialty care when needed. General dentists will make recommendation back to the GKAS Committee for those children with additional needs. They will then be assigned to volunteer-specialists. In the event that a GKAS patient misses or is late for an appointment, the volunteer doctor may use his/her discretion regarding re-appointment. It is ultimately the parents’ responsibility to keep the appointment and be on-time.
If for any reason you are unable to volunteer your services to this worthy cause, please consider making a financial contribution to GKAS. All donations will go to defraying the costs of putting on this event and assist in providing needed materials for use by our volunteer dentists.
INFORMATION FOR THE SCHOOL NURSE:
We believe that one of the best resources available to identify children suffering from poor dental health and unable to afford needed care is through our local schools. And who better for this purpose than you, our school nurses? We are providing these guidelines to assist you in determining which students qualify and how to register them for the GKAS event.
Selection criteria should include the following:
(1) Eligible children must be elementary or middle school aged;
(2) Eligible children must be enrolled in one of the North Texas Dental Society communities and have good attendance;
(3) Eligible children must demonstrate an inability to receive regular dental care due to financial limitations (such as parental unemployment; no dental insurance and/or parental income below poverty line; or qualification for government aid, such as Medicaid, Head Start, and school lunch programs). Good indicators of potential need would be those children who have never been to the dentist before; those who have obvious dental problems which are not being addressed; those who have been sent to the school nurse’s office with a dental complaint; or, those who have missed school due to pain/illness from untreated dental problems.
Once a child is identified for GKAS, use the “School Nurse Assessment Form” to further determine the child’s suitability for the GKAS event. Based upon your selection, please send the “GKAS Parent Letter for Kids” to the parents of each child you have chosen. If the parents decide to enroll their children in the program, the GKAS Committee will need to have them fill out and provide a completed “Patient Registration/Health History Form”. It must have a signature at the bottom for disclosure and consent to treat. Children with incomplete forms will not be eligible to participate in the GKAS event.
Children will be seen at CCCC Dental Hygiene School on (2012 date to be determined) or at the Texas Women’s University Dental Hygiene School on (2012 date to be determined).
You will be given a block of times that you will use to assign out to each child. You will also notify the child’s parents of the date, time, and location by using the appointment time and school map forms located below.
When the child arrives for his/her appointment, they will receive dental education along with a, dental examination, xrays, and cleanings. If the child has multiple dental problems, a determination of treatment will be given to the parent with possible alternatives for treatment. Please remember that this is a once a year event, and the doctor will not be responsible for additional care beyond this appointment day.
Please be advised that many dental offices are not equipped to provide English/Spanish translators for Spanish-only speaking patients and parents. They must bring an adult translator with them to their dental appointments. It is essential that the volunteer doctors and their staffs be able to communicate effectively with the patients and their parents.
We have asked your school district Head Nurse to act as liaison for your schools during the event. But, we are also available to answer any questions or problems concerning GKAS Day. Please contact Lisa McLerran at ntds4@yahoo.com or 469.855.9965 with any questions or concerns that you have regarding the event.
GKAS Forms:
School Nurse Assessment Form
Patient Registration
GKAS Parent Letter for Kids (English Version)
GKAS Parent Letter for Kids (Spanish Version)
Collin College Appointment Sheet
Collin College Hygiene School Map
TWU Appointment Sheet
TWU Hygiene School Map
