Dientes Community Dental's Dr. Samuel Kuo treats Jose Mendoza in a building at Grey Bears in Live Oak this week as Dientes and Grey Bear are partnering to address a critical gap in access to oral health care for seniors in need.
The day will include sessions on preventative dental and medical care from Dientes Community Dental and Santa Cruz Community Health, as well as sessions on how to help kids and families with trauma. The event will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at Live Oak Elementary School at 1916 Capitola Road, Santa Cruz.
Oral health inequities for children in Santa Cruz County have improved in recent years, but more work is needed to address gaps in care for low-income, teenage and elderly residents. Of the county's 82,000 residents on Medi-Cal insurance, only 30,000 or about 36.5% are accessing dental care according to Dientes CEO Laura Marcus.
"Community health center employees across Santa Cruz County and all over the United States were celebrated during National Health Center Week, Aug. 6-12," writes Maritza Lara in a Guest Commentary. "Nationally, health centers provide comprehensive health care services to more than 30 million patients across 14,500 communities annually. In Santa Cruz County, the Safety Net Clinic Coalition serves 1 in 3 local residents."