Iowa LEND Trainees Gain Practical Experience through Iowa Mission of Mercy
November 8, 2012
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| It was inspirational to watch dentists and students on their feet all day, providing high quality services to people who were otherwise unable to receive services and to hear people share their joy about their new smiles." |
Iowa LEND Trainees Gain Practical Experience through Iowa Mission of Mercy
Sixteen Iowa LEND (ILEND) trainees were among the hundreds of volunteers who assisted with this year's annual Iowa Mission of Mercy (Iowa MOM) in Davenport, Iowa on October 5 and 6. Iowa MOM was started in 2008 by the Iowa Dental Foundation to provide free dental care for any child or adult, regardless of income. Access to dental care can be an issue for many Americans, but for those individuals who have limited resources, or who have disabilities and are reliant on Medicaid for their health and dental coverage, access to care often represents a significant challenge.
Faculty, staff and trainees from the Iowa LEND program learned about the Iowa Mission of Mercy activity through their ongoing partnerships with the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and the Iowa Primary Care Association (PCA) who are also involved with the event. UI Pediatric dental residents routinely participate in interdisciplinary seminars with the ILEND trainees, and staff members from the Iowa PCA provide information to the trainees about access to care issues in Iowa as well as opportunities for the trainees to learn about and observe Community Health Centers and the services they provide. Trainees who volunteered at the Iowa MOM were able to learn firsthand about the barriers to health and dental care in Iowa and how it affects individuals with limited resources, including individuals with disabilities who may rely on Medicaid for their healthcare coverage.
As volunteers, ILEND trainees helped patients write thank-you notes and complete exit surveys, and served as interpreters for individuals with hearing impairments and those individuals whose native or primary language was one other than English. Trainees volunteered for weekend and early morning shifts, and also helped with crowd management, day care services, and escorting patients to and from the clinic for appointments.
One trainee who served as an interpreter summed up her experience by saying, "I was able to talk with people from all over Iowa... I learned about their stories, struggles and their overwhelming gratitude for the health care they received at Iowa MOM. It was inspirational to watch dentists and students on their feet all day, providing high quality services to people who were otherwise unable to receive services and to hear people share their joy about their new smiles."
One Iowa MOM event is held each year at a different location in the state. This year's event provided 1,389 patients with $923,373.00 in free dental care. Over the past five years, Iowa MOM has provided more than $4.4 million in free dental care to approximately 7,000 patients.
Members of the AUCD network who would like to learn more about developing a similar partnership in their state may contact America's Dentists Care Foundation (ADCF) in Wichita, Kansas. This organization coordinates all the portable dental equipment for Missions of Mercy throughout the country and maintains a website telling where and when these events occur. The website is www.adcfmom.org. Those wishing to learn more about Iowa's LEND program may contact Sue Pearson, ILEND Interdisciplinary Training Coordinator, at [email protected] or visit http://www.healthcare.uiowa.edu/cdd/ucedd/ilend/index.html.
