The UofL dental practice is part of Goodwill Industries of Kentucky’s newly built, 120,000 square-foot West Louisville Opportunity Center.

The center, which is designed to be a “one-stop shop” for life-changing resources including dental and medical care, workforce training, career coaching, youth mentoring, second-chance banking, and restorative justice services, is expected to serve more than 50,000 people each year.

According to a recent , Kentucky ranks 43^rd in the nation in dental care. As with other UofL community dental practices, the west Louisville practice is designed to serve people with unmet dental care needs, including individuals who have Medicaid or no dental insurance. In addition to serving Goodwill’s clients, the dental practice serves the broader community of west Louisville, which is a nine-neighborhood area comprised of mostly African American residents.

Gerry Bradley, executive vice president and university provost at UofL, and former dean of the UofL School of Dentistry, said the new clinic will provide great benefit for the west Louisville community as well as populate a new generation of highly qualified dentists who will work alongside licensed dentists in their clinical rotations.��

“For the School of Dentistry, the definition of student success means entering the workforce as a competent, confident dental professional who practices evidence-based patient care, leads with compassion and has a purpose-driven, service-oriented mindset,” Bradley said.

Margaret Hill, interim dean for the School of Dentistry, said that dental care can be truly transformational for patients who need it.

“People looking to enter the workforce and progress in their careers can be aided by taking care of oral health, which can help restore overall health and build confidence, both of which can be barriers to moving forward.”

View pictures from the ribbon-cutting event on .��

The new site also gives dental students a community site near Louisville to learn alongside a full-time licensed dentist. School of Dentistry Interim Dean Margaret Hill says it is important for these future health care providers to grow their skills in a variety of settings outside the school.������

“As our students travel to other parts of Kentucky, they are maturing into culturally competent dental practitioners,” Hill said. “We build service into the educational experience, not just on a volunteer level but as a part of the curriculum,” Hill said.������

In recent years, the school opened a clinical rotation site in Paducah through a collaboration with West Kentucky Community and Technical College. UofL also sends students to Beverly, Kentucky, located in the eastern part of the state, to learn with a dentist at the Red Bird Dental Clinic. ������

Pallavi Patil is an alumna of the School of Dentistry and the full-time dentist at UofL’s Shelbyville dental office. Patil says she looks forward to mentoring students and building relationships with patients. ������

“I think it’s important to establish a good rapport and trust between doctor and patient. This helps patients feel comfortable and motivated throughout their comprehensive dental care,” she said.��������

The new dental practice offers affordable dental care, and financial assistance may be available to those in need, thanks to the dental school’s Compassionate Care fund. This fund has helped numerous patients of the school pay for treatment. Donors to Compassionate Care include individuals and several organizations, including the Delta Dental of Kentucky Foundation. The foundation also has committed to help pay initial start-up costs at the Shelbyville site, making dental care even more economical for people in the region.��������

The is in close proximity to UofL Health – Shelbyville Hospital and other health care providers.������

Hill says in addition to serving new patients, the practice hopes to attract those who currently or previously traveled to the School of Dentistry for care. ������

“For some of these folks, it’s very difficult to make a trip to downtown Louisville – so this will save them time and money,” she said. “It’s all about improving access to care.”����

View the from the ribbon cutting event.��

Paige Moore with the School of Dentistry contributed to this article.

Geographic and economic conditions create limited access to oral health care — the next closest dentist is a 45- to- 90-minute drive.

“Without Red Bird, most people here would simply have no dental care. It’s extremely important to this community,” said Revelle Berry, a long-time patient of the clinic.

More than a year ago, the began a collaboration with the Red Bird Dental Clinic, offering a new clinical site rotation for students, while expanding Red Bird’s ability to serve more people.

“Generations of poverty have greatly exacerbated health conditions that need extensive, late-stage treatment, follow-up and support,” said Kari Collins, executive director of the Red Bird Clinic Inc., and Red Bird Mission Inc. “Our vision is of one of a stronger, sustainable community and UofL is an important partner in carrying out this vision.”

The Red Bird Clinic Inc., includes both dental and medical components. It grew out of the , which started in 1921 with a private school, and expanded to include job training, clothes closet, food pantry, adult education and senior citizen services.

“The services offered through Red Bird are so important for the people of this region, and we are pleased to have UofL reach across the state to engage with us as we strive to become a healthier community,” said Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers.

“The clinical experience at Red Bird enhances the education of our students with enriching cultural and clinical practice experiences that will make them compassionate, exceptional dental health care providers,” said the dean of the UofL School of Dentistry, Gerry Bradley, BDS, MS, Dr.Med.Dent.

Fourth-year dental student Sarah Jestel spent much of July at the Red Bird Dental Clinic for an Area Health ����ֱ�� Centers program requirement.

“The patients were so appreciative of the work we completed, especially those individuals requiring extractions,” she said. “Many came in with elevated blood pressure and had been in pain a long time.”

The students learn under the supervision of Bill Collins, DMD, dental director for the Red Bird Dental Clinic. Two other UofL alumni, Susan King, DMD, and Bob McGuinn, DMD, along with former dean of the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry, Sharon Turner, DDS, JD, also serve on rotation as gratis faculty to oversee the UofL students.

“Students encounter varying levels of difficulty, including emergency situations and medically compromised patients. They work out of their comfort zones and increase their confidence levels and speed. They also learn practice management skills,” Collins said.

Since the collaboration started, dental students have helped provide care for almost 600 patients, and completed nearly 700 procedures for many who are uninsured or under-insured.

Individual donors like McGuinn, along with the and help make it possible.

“We fully support the Red Bird Dental Clinic mission and look forward to the continued oral health benefits it will bring southeastern Kentucky,” said Delta Dental of Kentucky’s CEO Jude Thompson. “Without the University of Louisville, access to care would be extremely difficult, and we’re proud Louisville is represented by such an esteemed group of students.”

The use of a mobile dental unit funded by increases the clinic’s ability to serve those without access to care. This includes a new outreach to individuals who are actively engaged in substance use treatment. Adding oral health care helps support their efforts to achieve and maintain recovery.��

“As a Kentucky Medicaid dental benefits administrator serving approximately 1.1 million children and adults, ����ŧ������ endeavors to support new and innovative opportunities that increase access to quality dental health care across the state,” said Jerry Caudill, DMD, State Dental Director for ����ŧ������.

“It takes many partners and donors to help us address the numerous challenges facing the underserved here in Appalachia, and we are thankful to all those who give and serve here,” Collins said.

“Here at UofL we are working to create solutions,” said UofL President Neeli Bendapudi. “In our health care landscape where there are too few primary care providers to meet demand, UofL Care Partners offers our dental patients an in-house clinical service solution.”

“UofL is among just a handful of higher education institutions in the United States implementing a dental-nursing collaborative care model clinic, we are proud to be among them,” said T. Gerard Bradley, BDS, MS, Dr.Med.Dent., dean, UofL School of Dentistry.

UofL Care Partners will help create a continuity of care for patients, says Marcia J. Hern, EdD, CNS, RN, dean, UofL School of Nursing.

“The solid future of effective health care will rely on inter-professional teams that best serve the public,” she said.

UofL Care Partners hopes to serve as an urgent care style clinic for patients who need help with issues such as blood pressure or diabetes management.

“Without management of these type of health issues, patients run the risk of delaying or foregoing their dental treatment,” said Tim Daugherty, D.M.D., associate dean of clinical affairs, School of Dentistry. “If a person went under local anesthetic for a dental procedure and had uncontrolled diabetes, their insulin levels could drop leading to life-threatening problems.”

In 2017, the School of Dentistry wrote nearly 940 medical consults for patients who needed to follow-up with a provider before progressing through their dental treatment. Almost 40-percent of these patients failed to complete the follow-up required for their oral health treatment.

The clinic is an individual room located on the first floor within the patient waiting area. Dental patients, along with others including faculty and staff or community members can make an appointment with UofL Care Partners’ part-time nurse practitioner. In addition to offering chronic disease management, patients can have basic lab work completed or be seen for an acute illness. A nurse practitioner also will work with patients to connect them with a primary care provided or specialist, if needed.

UofL Care Partners is an outgrowth of an existing relationship between the Schools of Dentistry and Nursing who jointly received a $1.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) in 2012. The grant supported an educational initiative for nursing and dental students to enhance communication between the professions and develop best practices in patient assessment, consultation and management to improve overall health of patients.

Additionally, DMD students learn from a nurse practitioner who instructs them on completing medical history forms required for all new dental patients as part of the admission process. Dental students also learn how to evaluate whether a patient is healthy enough to complete an exam and subsequent treatment.

“This initiative is a creative demonstration of how nurse practitioners are meeting the needs of patients where they are, and builds on best practices and success at the School of Nursing’s other clinical operation, the Kentucky Racing Health Service Center,” said Whitney Nash, PhD, APRN, FAANP, associate dean of practice and service, UofL School of Nursing.��

Check out video from today’s ribbon cutting ceremony below. .��

University of Louisville dentistry student Devin Moran told Yara Alnaanah to “open wide” so he could get a look at her teeth. With a smile, Moran told the kindergartner at Camp Taylor Elementary School “looks good!”

On this day, Moran was��one of dozens of students from the UofL School of Dentistry invading Camp Taylor and three other Jefferson County schools to give free checkups and advice to more than 300 young students, many of them who rarely see a dentist.

“This is a part of our community outreach” said the dentistry school’s Dr. Haska Aljukic.

Moran said “it gives us a chance to interact with kids out in the community and also gives the community a chance to get some free screenings and free dental work done. So it’s kind of a win-win.”

Camp Taylor’s principal said he and the students’ busy parents appreciated UofL’s effort. So did Yara Alnaanah.

“They tell me, ‘wow, your teeth are nice,’” she said.

Check out the Give Kids a Smile Day below:

“Our collaboration with the Red Bird Clinic is a significant step for the university as we seek to systematically serve our mission to provide health care throughout the Commonwealth and improve the overall well-being of its citizens,” said UofL Interim President Greg Postel, MD.

Beginning Feb. 23, dental and dental hygiene students will begin clinical rotations at the Red Bird Clinic. Each week, six students will travel to Beverly, Kentucky, and help staff the Dental Clinic, open Thursday through Saturday.

“This new clinical site enhances the education of our students with enriching cultural and clinical practice experiences that will make them compassionate, exceptional dental health care providers,” said the dean of the UofL School of Dentistry, T. Gerard Bradley, BDS, MS, DrMedDent.

The Red Bird Clinic Inc., is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that grew out of Red Bird Mission Inc., which started in 1921 with a private school, and expanded to include medical and dental services, job training, clothes closet, food pantry, adult education, services to senior citizens and more.

Red Bird Clinic Executive Director Kari Collins says the relationship with the UofL School of Dentistry increases the availability of dental treatment for the underserved.

“It is our hope that some of these students will be drawn to practice in rural areas; perhaps someone will return to serve at Red Bird Clinic in the future,” Collins said. ����

Under the leadership of Red Bird Clinic Dental Director Bill Collins, DMD, the dental clinic provides a variety of services to about 20 to 25 patients daily, including cleanings, fillings, root canals, crowns, bridges and extractions.

Collins, a graduate of the UofL School of Dentistry, says outreach is essential for the education of dental students.

“Everything is not cut and dry at outreach clinics; high difficulty levels provide challenges for the students and increase their abilities. It’s amazing to watch as they begin to put things together and their eyes and faces become bright with satisfaction. I try to ask students to learn one new thing each day — if they will continue this, it will make them good, confident practitioners,” Collins said.

Other alums of the School of Dentistry, Greg Bentley, DMD, Susan King, DMD, and Bob McGuinn, DMD, will serve on rotation as gratis faculty to oversee the UofL students.

A handful of dental students already have engaged in clinical dental services at the Red Bird Clinic in 2016. The school’s four Outreach Scholars, a designation given through a competitive scholarship opportunity, rotate to six clinics throughout the state. Fourth-year dental student and Outreach Scholar Robbie Troehler, from Ludlow, Kentucky, says it is rewarding to help those in need.

“It has been a blessing to pursue a career in dentistry, and it is important for me to use my education to give back to fellow Kentuckians as I gain valuable experience in outreach clinics,” Troehler said.

The School of Dentistry has a long history of helping serve the people of rural Kentucky, having participated in multiple Remote Area Medical events in Pikeville, where students and faculty provided free dental care to hundreds during each event.