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By Stacie Crozier

Statewide public service announcements, dental exams and education at a baby's 12-month well visit at a community health center and screenings and care for underserved schoolchildren were among the 47 programs that received grants from the ADA Foundation's Harris Fund for Children's Dental Health grants program for 2006.

The Foundation announced the names of grant winning programs from 26 states last month and awarded $195,000. More than 200,000 children nationwide in 2006 will receive oral health education or access to care through programs receiving grants from the Harris Fund.

Parents and grandparents of young children and health care professionals throughout the state of Utah are the target audience for the public service announcement campaign "Mind Your Mouth," says Peggy Bowman of the Maternal Child and Health Bureau Oral Health Program. "Our 30-second spot features a dancing baby and an announcer who tells viewers about the importance of a dental visit by a child's first birthday to prevent early childhood caries," she says. "We have found that at-risk children who don't see a dentist until they are 2 or 3 have a much greater chance of having decay."

Cleaning time: Hygienist Mary Lou Finewood cleans a child's teeth during the Smile Kentucky! treatment day.

First visit: A young patient and his mom at Hilltop Community Health Center in Valparaiso, Ind., receive dental health education from hygienist Rose Kusmiz during a 12-month well visit.

The oral health PSA is an extension of the successful and award-winning "Baby Your Baby" media campaign, a two-year outreach campaign initiative by the Utah Department of Health that worked hand in hand with the state's expanding prenatal care services delivered through local health departments, community health centers and other clinics.

Production for the PSA was funded through a Health Resources and Services Administration grant, and the $5,000 Harris grant enabled the bureau to secure a matching grant and secure airtime for the spots.

Hilltop Community Health Center in Valparaiso, Ind., used its $2,200 Harris grant to purchase supplies and educational materials for a program to educate parents of 1-year-olds about the importance of oral health and preventive care for their children.

"We primarily serve Medicaid patients and most of our parents don't go to the dentist because it isn't covered for them and it's financially out of their reach," said Beth Wrobel, executive director. "But Medicaid covers all dental care for children in Indiana, and we wanted a program that would help these children receive dental care and education and help show their parents the value of good dental health."

Hilltop is fortunate to have both medical and dental clinics on-site, allowing a dentist and/or a dental hygienist to be present at a client's 12-month well visit, she added. "We're trying to make it seamless with overall health care."

With its grant, Hilltop was able to purchase children's toothbrushes and toothpaste, a book about visiting the dentist that each family receives, other educational materials and a dental health education puppet—Al E. Gator, who, Ms. Wrobel added, is a big hit with the kids.

"The kids love the puppet and it takes the fear away from a dental visit. We are fortunate to have the ADA Foundation here to help us with this. I'm really excited about it. If we can save just one child from mouth pain by introducing them to the dentist at 1 year, then we're doing something worthwhile," Ms. Wrobel said.

The community health center also mandates that expectant mothers receive a prenatal dental exam and cleaning, and help patients find funding to cover the cost. This is a step, she explained, toward showing families that dental care is a necessity and not an option.

"It's critical for young children and expectant mothers to take care of their oral health and prevent serious health problems later on," she added.

Four years after a school-based access to care program was born, some 17,000 children are smiling in Kentucky. The Smile Kentucky! program screens about 4,000 children in grades 3-6 at 30 schools each year, and then provides free dental care to children in need at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry.

The program has now provided free care to more than 1,000 children and has smoothed out all the bumps in the road they experienced in the first year, says Susan Broughman Lewis, executive secretary of the Louisville Dental Society.

This year, after screening some 4,000 children, the program invited more than 900 children to receive free treatment at the dental school and about 350 accepted.

Smile Kentucky! used part of its $5,000 Harris grant to purchase portable dental lights that volunteers can take to schools for initial screenings instead of borrowing them for each school visit.

The funding also helped purchase displays and education materials that are used at the dental school and can be taken to the elementary schools for oral health education and purchased dental health books for participating schools' libraries.

The grant also invests in a research project by two pre-dental students to evaluate the records of every Smile Kentucky! screening and treatment since it began, enabling program organizers to track the type and frequency of services provided and plan for the future.

Nearly 700 volunteers participated this year, adds Mr. Lewis, including all junior and senior students from the dental school.

"We plan to do this forever and invest in things that will help us provide screening and care in the future," she says.