PHOENIX (PRWEB) August 13, 2019 -- Improving oral health for Arizona’s most vulnerable population, St. Vincent de Paul recently completed a full renovation of its charity dental clinic to increase access to dental care for underserved children and adults in the Phoenix community. The Delta Dental of Arizona Oral Health Center at the Virginia G. Piper Medical & Dental Clinic transformed from an eight-chair clinic to 16 chairs, which allows the staff to increase patient visits from 6,000 to more than 10,000 annually.
As one of the largest charity dental clinics of its kind in the country, the renovation and additional patient care spaces sets up SVdP dental volunteers and staff to provide comprehensive oral health care to uninsured and low-income patients who would otherwise forgo even the most discounted dental care because of financial strain.
“Within a month, I will see more severely medically compromised patients than you would see in private practice in five years,” says Dr. Ken Snyder of St. Vincent de Paul. “Without Delta Dental of Arizona and other generous donors in our community, this clinic and the types of procedures we offer patients or the training we do for dental students, may not have been possible.”
In late 2017, Delta Dental of Arizona announced a $1 million gift to SVdP to sustain the additional operational costs of the expanded dental clinic to ensure both preventive and emergency oral health care services for underserved children and adults are available for the next 10 years. Beyond the comprehensive and emergency care operations provided daily, specialty services such as endodontistry, periodontistry, orthodontistry and oral surgery are also available at the clinic.
“There are very few organizations in the Phoenix area that do as much good work as St. Vincent de Paul does,” says Delta Dental of Arizona President and CEO Allan Allford. “They are not doing it right for their own notoriety, they are doing it right for the people who need it most. If you can walk into that clinic and not walk out with a changed heart, then you don’t have a heart. So when we had the opportunity to live our mission through SVdP, it was a perfect fit.”
DDAZ was also proud to outfit the dental volunteers and staff with brand new scrubs to go with the brand new facility. The clinic expects to be fully operational with all chairs operating by the end of August and will begin accepting patients in the new space at that time.
For more information on the dental clinic visit http://www.stvincentdepaul.net/programs or view this informational video http://bit.ly/2KvcLkC.
About Delta Dental of Arizona Foundation
Founded in 1997, the Delta Dental of Arizona Foundation is the charitable arm of Delta Dental of Arizona, the dental benefits company. Its mission is to improve oral health, particularly for underserved and uninsured groups and communities. Since 2006, the Delta Dental of Arizona Foundation has provided more than $11 million in community benefit support for oral health promotion and dental disease prevention programs across the state. For more information on the Foundation, please visit http://www.deltadentalaz.com/foundation.
About St. Vincent de Paul
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is an international non-profit organization dedicated to serving people in need and providing others with the opportunity to serve. The Phoenix Diocesan Council has been assisting central and northern Arizona families since 1946. Programs aim to feed, clothe, house and heal individuals and families through five charity dining rooms, medical and dental care for the uninsured, transitional housing, thrift stores and a general helping hand.
Brian OMalley, Gordon C. James Public Relations, http://www.gcjpr.com, 480-703-8338, [email protected]
SOURCE Gordon C. James Public Relations
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