The Southwest Virginia Regional Dental Center will be sponsoring Give Kids A Smile Day® to provide underserved children with free dental services on Wednesday, August 5, 2015, from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. The goal of Give Kids A Smile® is to raise awareness of the epidemic of untreated dental disease occurring locally and to increase access to oral health care to solve the crisis within the community. Free dental and educational services will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis to children ages 0-15 years old from low-income families.
A group of 20 volunteer dental professional provided services to 23 children during the The Give Kids A Smile® event held in March 2015, at the Southwest Virginia Regional Dental Center. Dr. Jeri Bullock says, “We are hoping to double the number of children we treat and increase the number of services each child receives. Join us for a fun day celebrating our children’s oral health!”
The American Dental Association (ADA) launched the Give Kids A Smile® program nationally in 2003 as a way for dentists to join with others in the community to provide dental services to underserved children. Each year, about 350,000 to 400,000 children benefit from more than 1,500 events, all because of the efforts of 40,000 or more annual volunteers nationwide.
Nearly one in four children ages 2-11 years old have untreated cavities in their baby teeth, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many children enrolled in Medicaid receive no dental services throughout the year.
Give Kids A Smile® is held annually to:
• Provide free, easily accessible dental services to qualifying individuals.
• Raise awareness of the epidemic of untreated dental disease occurring locally and nationally and create local public and private partnerships to increase access to oral health care to solve this crisis.
For additional information about Give Kids A Smile®, contact Dr. Jeri Bullock at (276) 496-4492, ext. 1020 or jbullock@svchs.thosegeeksdev.com.