At Bread for the City’s Northwest Center, located in the District’s Shaw neighborhood, guests gathered on Feb. 16 to cut a ribbon, and to celebrate the official beginning of a much-needed new health program.
“A dental clinic was the most requested service from our clients,” said Greg Bloom, a development associate in communications at Bread for the City.
The nonprofit’s two-chair dental clinic, with its fresh green and white walls, is equipped with everything needed for oral examinations, X-rays, dental cleanings, fluoride treatments, scaling and root planing, sealants, restorative work, extractions and dentures.
The services are available to any D.C. resident who qualifies for public medical insurance. Patients in desperate need of care have already begun to make use of it.
“We’re expecting over 1,000 in the course of the year,” said Bloom.
An expansion of the Northwest Center was completed one year ago, and the building included a dental suite. Bread for the City predicted it would need nearly three years of fundraising before it could make the clinic operational, but residents were desperate for the service, and the community raised enough to open the clinic in just one year.
The dental clinic is dedicated to the late William J. Christie, D.D.S., and his wife Mary C. Christie in honor of their contributions to the project. The D.C. Primary Care Association and CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield also provided support.
Dental care can be hard to find for the poor, and Bread for the City estimates that up to half of its clients had no previous access to dental services. Some who have come to the clinic so far say they have not been to see a dentist for years.
“I get scary stories,” said Dr. Steven Myles, the clinic’s resident dentist. “Some [patients] have definitely seen a dentist recently…but I’ve heard five years, seven years commonly, even 10 years, as much as over a decade.”
Myles, who attended Howard University, and is familiar with the neighborhood, has been affectionately
nicknamed “Dr. Smyles.”
The District is not alone in its shortage of dental services for the poor.
Oral health has been recognized as one of the most critical health issues in the country for low-income families. According to the health policy journal Health Affairs, nearly 82 million Americans lacked access to dental care in 2008.
More than 40 percent of homeless adults surveyed in a national study by the American Journal of Public Health in 2010 reported that their dental care needs were not met.
Oral care for children is of particular concern. According to the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, tooth decay is the most common chronic childhood disease.
Earlier this month Hospitals & Health Networks reported that more than 50 percent of vulnerable
children have an oral disease and little to no access to dentists.
National awareness of the problems with dental care has grown largely from news of tragic youth deaths caused by easily-fixable oral problems. The first highly-publicized case was of 12-year old Deamonte Driver in 2007. After living in homelessness in Prince George’s County, Maryland, just outside of D.C., Driver died when untreated oral bacteria spread to his brain.
At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Bread for the City patient and board member Michael Blue took to the podium to express his overwhelming appreciation to the organization.
“I’m at a loss for words,” he said to guests. “It’s hard out there…It can be difficult to simply survive, but Bread for the City opens doors for you to get the help you need.”
Blue emphasized the importance of how the organization offers more than primary care: it offers non-judgmental support and boosts in self-esteem.
Bread for the City’s Northwest Center is located at 1525 7th St, NW, Washington, DC. Appointments can be made by calling (202) 386-7020.
