Dental fundamental: Barboursville Mission of Mercy

When the day dawns, Saturday, May 1, the Barboursville Firehouse will be thronged by  people caught up in a "circle of goodness," where good deeds foster better ones, where givers become receivers. 
It may be a brilliant May Day morning that will turn hot by noon. It may be cold and pouring buckets. No matter. These folks will wait all day if need be. Some have been here since the night before.
Their speech mirrors their diversity: from the drawl of Appalachia to the triplet staccato of rapidly spoken Spanish. Although of various ages and ethnic backgrounds, they all share one thing: a desperate need for dental care.
Many will be suffering from broken and rotten teeth. Others will have no teeth at all. For some, this may be the first time they have ever seen a dentist.  One or two may be suffering from "meth mouth."
It won't matter. They will all be treated.
And it won't cost them a thing because for this one day and this one day only, the Barboursville Firehouse will be transformed into a massive free dental clinic, known as a Mission of Mercy, or M.O.M.
"Anybody who's willing to stand in line for as long as it takes to see us, we will treat them," says executive director of the Virginia Dental Association, Terry Dickinson. "We ask for no identification; we ask no questions about if they have the proper finances. We don't question them. All we say is, 'if you're willing to come and stand in line for four or five hours to get treated, we will see you, and we'll treat you, no questions asked.'"
The Virginia Dental Association, Virginia Commonwealth University and the newly formed Piedmont Regional Dental Clinic will host the area's first free Piedmont Regional Mission of Mercy (MOM) Dental Day for Virginia under-insured and uninsured adults on Saturday, May 1, 2010 at the Barboursville Fire House (5251 Spotswood Trail).
"Quality health care is on the minds of many Virginians," said Mary Foley of the Piedmont Regional Dental Clinic. "The Virginia Employment Commission estimates that one in five Virginians lives in an area underserved by dentists. We hope to help alleviate some of this need with our first MOM Dental Day."
Pre-registration will be held at the Barboursville Fire House at 2 p.m. on Friday, April 30, 2010. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged, as patients will be treated on a first-come, first-served basis. Same-day registration will begin at 7 a.m. Saturday, however, pre-registered patients should arrive at 6 a.m. to be seated.
Once patients are called, a team from Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Dentistry will take X-Rays and screen patients to determine if they need fillings, extractions, a simple cleaning, or any combination of the three. "And as a part of that, we're going to do glucose screening; we're going to do blood pressure; just general health information, before we actually treat them," says longtime local dentist Dr. Jack Thompson, one of the event's organizers.
When your procedure is finished, you'll be given a toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, and dental hygiene information. Dr. Thompson continues, "That's one of our goals, is part of the hygiene screening, to try to get them on a better brushing regimen, better meals, how to take care of themselves better, give up smoking, give up sugary snacks, diet control type things."
While this is the first M.O.M. event in this region, to date 46 M.O.M. projects have provided over $18 million of free dental care to more than 30,000 needy Virginians. Although the M.O.M. is staffed by as many as 350 volunteers, it still costs money…$40,000 in equipment rental, medications and supplies for just that one day.

The Piedmont Regional Dental Clinic, Inc. (PRDC) is a new non-profit organization dedicated to providing low-cost dental services to underserved residents in the Piedmont region of Virginia and those having public option insurance such as Medicaid and FAMIS. When fully operational, PRDC will have permanent offices and a full-time dental staff.
Visit www.vaprdc.org to learn more.