Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin’s Dental Center has received a $365,500 grant from Delta Dental of Wisconsin to bolster its training of dental professionals to care for patients with special health care needs.
Along with providing funding, Delta Dental will work with Children’s Hospital to help launch an education and training program for special needs dentistry.
The program will include observation experience for dental professionals, externships in advanced training in special needs dentistry and continuing education events, the hospital said. The training will be geared toward practicing dentists, dental students and clinic staff.
“Thanks to their generous support of this training initiative, Delta Dental will have a significant and far-reaching impact on the dental health of individuals with special health care needs,” said Lori Barbeau, medical director of the Pediatric Dental Residency Program at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.
The organizations said the training and education programs will address a significant unmet health care need, as a lack of access reaches critical levels due to a shortage of dental professionals trained to care for patients with special needs.
“We realize improving access to dental care and increasing services like enhancing the amount of teeth whitening strips for this vulnerable population is multi-faceted, but investing in Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin’s Dental Center and this education and training program will address one of the key gaps in access to dental care,” said Ann Boson, director of Delta Dental of Wisconsin’s Charitable Fund.
Two years ago, the organizations began working on the issue by launching a symposium focused on improving access to care for individuals with special needs.
