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Smiles Across Minnesota

Children’s Dental Health Month

My Healthy Smile

Serve-a-Smile: Making a Healthy Difference

Smiles Across Minnesota

Smiles Across Minnesota is a statewide, school and community-based initiative promoting evidence-based oral health prevention for underserved Minnesota children. The program utilizes local providers who are experienced and dedicated in ensuring more children have access to basic dental resources.

Background

The program was launched in 2005 with Oral Health America’s Smiles Across America program in Saint Paul and Minneapolis school districts with clinical services provided by Children’s Dental Services. In 2006, Delta Dental of Minnesota and Children’s Dental Services agreed to become co-chairs of the newly formed Smiles Across Minnesota advisory committee. The advisory committee is made up of respected leaders from a variety of Minnesota organizations that are interested in improving the oral health of Minnesota children.
Oral Health America, a leading national oral health advocacy organization, established the Smiles Across America program to address the profound and consequential oral health disparities of children across the U.S. With the help of national sponsors, Oral Health America leverages national funding and in-kind donations as well as leadership and momentum.
Since the program’s inception, Delta Dental of Minnesota has provided more than $300,000 in funding and in-kind donations to expand and support six additional efforts throughout Minnesota. There are now eight sites that have joined to support and advance Smiles Across Minnesota and its goals.
The model promotes the use of a collaborative practice agreement, which allow a dental hygienist, who works under a cooperative relationship with a consulting dentist, to provide many basic preventive dental care services. An important element to the success of the program is garnering local community support and funding at each expansion site.
To date, over 12,000 uninsured and underserved children have received critically needed sealants, cleanings and fluoride treatments as a result of the Smiles Across Minnesota program.
“Tooth decay remains the number one unmet childhood disease in the country and Minnesota is no exception,” said Ann Johnson, co-chair of the Smiles Across Minnesota advisory committee and director of Community Affairs at Delta Dental of Minnesota. “I am pleased that several leading Minnesota organizations have agreed to join forces to help ensure that this preventable disease is met with education and resources Minnesotans can use to slow down the rate of decay. Collectively, I am confident we will continue to make some real progress on these critical issues that face Minnesota children.”

Advisory Committee

CO-CHAIRS
Ann Johnson, MA
Delta Dental of Minnesota

Sarah Wovcha, JD, MPH
Children’s Dental Services

MEMBERS
Steve Bonfig
3M ESPE

Colleen Brickle, RDH, EdD
Normandale Community College

Carol Ferrazo, RDH
Minnesota Dental Hygienists Association

Peggy Huot-Hanson
Suburban Ramsey Family Collaborative

Gayle Kelly
Minnesota Head Start Association

Ellen Neunfeld, RDH
3M ESPE

Merry Jo Thoele, RDH
Minnesota Department of Health

Representative
Greater Twin Cities United Way

Patti Peterson, RDH
Minnesota Dental Hygienists Association

Paula Reed
United Way of Greater Duluth

Ann Rogers
Delta Dental of Minnesota

Jeanne Strand
GC America

Shelley Valentini
United Way of Northeastern Minnesota

Kathy Zwieg, RDA
Oral Health America, Executive Committee, At-Large

Vision

All Minnesota children have healthy smiles.

Goals

• Increase the number of sustainable, school-based, school-linked, and community-based preventive dental care programs that serve uninsured and underinsured Minnesota children
• Promote the use of evidence-based care that is both clinically sound and cost effective
• Increase public awareness, providing information and advice to individuals, community and government leaders, health professionals, parents, teachers, and the media
• Leverage local and national resources to bring preventive care, such as fluoride and sealants, to children in school-based settings

Process

The following are some of the basic steps to launching a successful school-based dental care program.

1. Have a licensed (current) dental professional who can provide both the clinical and administrative services in an evidence-based, cost-effective and efficient manner.
2. Receive an invitation from a school or school district.
3. Hold community stakeholder meetings to discuss the benefits of school-based oral health care programs and to review program protocols and logistics.
4. Secure funding, hire local dental professionals and secure a dental referral network.
5. Work with schools to obtain parental consent forms.
6. Deliver dental assessments and preventive care to uninsured and underinsured children. (If a family already has commercial dental insurance, those children and their parents will be encouraged to visit their previously established dental home for their dental care needs.)
7. Refer any restorative dental care needs back to the child’s dental home or a local dentist or clinic that is willing to serve new patients.
8. Evaluate the program.
9. Maintain strong partnerships with, i.e., schools, parents, dental professionals, funders.
School-linked and community-based models utilize similar processes dependent upon local needs and resources.

Sites

The following cities have collaborated with Smiles Across Minnesota to successfully establish a school- and community-based oral health program for uninsured and underinsured children.

• St. Paul (2006)
• Minneapolis (2006)
• Rochester (Fall 2007)
• Duluth (January 2008)
• St. Cloud (March 2009)
• Iron Range (September 2009)
• Mankato (September 2009)
• International Falls (Fall 2010 official launch)

Clinical Providers

Children’s Dental Services (St. Paul, Minneapolis, Duluth, St. Cloud, Iron Range, International Falls) http://childrensdentalservices.org/
Children’s Dental Health Services (Rochester) http://twentyteeth.org/
Open Door Health Center (Mankato) www.odhc.org/

Contacts

For more information on the Smiles Across Minnesota program or Advisory Committee, email Ann Johnson at ajohnson@deltadentalmn.org.

If you are interested in setting up a school- or community-based program in your community, contact Eilidh Pederson at
ereyelts@childrensdentalservices.org or 612-746-1530 ext. 211.

Children’s Dental Health Month

As part of Children's Dental Health Month, Delta Dental of Minnesota is launching a new awareness campaign to let Minnesotans know about how to protect their baby’s teeth from harm.

Read the first educational piece from this campaign, called "Does Your Child Have a Drinking Problem?"

February is Children’s Dental Health Month. Delta Dental annually celebrates this national health awareness month to teach the importance of oral health prevention. We do this through a variety of activities.

Free Children’s Dental Screenings
Each Tuesday in February
Mall of America
Toddler Tuesday’s (Sam Goody Rotunda)
10 a.m. - noon

In addition, the Tooth Fairy will distribute free children’s toothbrushes and tooth fairy pouches, and educational material for parents. Additional sponsors include: Children’s Dental Services, Oral Health America and Comcast.

Other Children’s Dental Health Month activities include classroom visits; weekly oral health columns, and numerous other media and news activities.

My Healthy Smile

My Healthy Smile is a first-of-its-kind, interactive CD to teach children about good oral health and to ease anxiety of dental visits. Developed by Fraser, a leading Minnesota nonprofit organization that works with children and adults with special needs, and funded by Delta Dental of Minnesota, My Healthy Smile uses computerized social scripts to show children what to expect at dental visits.

Some of the topics covered in the scripts include having teeth cleaned, taking X-rays and getting fillings. The CD also includes social scripts about important oral health topics such as losing a tooth, brushing, getting braces and healthy eating. The CD also includes printable tip sheets and storyboards for parents and dental professionals.

My Healthy Smile is designed for children developmentally between the ages of 3 and 10. It is especially useful for children with autism or developmental disabilities and is appropriate for any child who has anxiety over visiting the dentist or who is new to the experience. Adults with developmental disabilities may also benefit from the CD.

Additional Information:

Contains beginner, intermediate and advanced levels
Compatible for PC and Mac computers
Online demo available at www.fraser.org/products
Available for purchase at www.fraser.org/products for $34.95 or by phone at
(612) 798-8349
All proceeds from sales benefit Fraser programs for people with special needs

Serve a Smile^SM Making a Healthy Difference Through Service
Youth Service Grant Program of Delta Dental of Minnesota

Serve a Smile is a grant program that combines health education and outreach with youth volunteerism in support of Youth Service America’s Semester of Service and Global Youth Service Day (GYSD). In its 7th year, Delta Dental has teamed up with the Minnesota Alliance with Youth and the Minnesota chapter of Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) to encourage Minnesota youth to serve their community.

The following documents can only be viewed by using Acrobat® Reader® software, which can be downloaded free of charge from http://www.adobe.com.

Important Dates for Serve a Smile:

Projects that are part of Semester of Service and GYSD are eligible to apply and receive Serve a Smile funding.

January 18, 2010                Serve a Smile program announcement
February 22, 2010              Grant applications due
March 8, 2010                     Serve a Smile winners selected
March 8 - 12, 2010              Grant agreements mailed
March 15 - April 18            Press releases sent
April 23 - 25                        Global Youth Service Day
May                                      Serve a Smile Select Award - Winner Announcement
June 1, 2010                       Serve a Smile evaluations due

Questions about Serve a Smile can be directed to Ann Rogers at arogers@deltadentalmn.org.