Dear Friend,

I hope that the start of the school year went well for everyone. It feels like only a week ago we were working hard in Naranjito, yet "back to school" season is in full swing already!

Naranjito ... ?

From July 14th through July 19th, seven KinderSmile Foundation volunteers traveled with myself and my husband to the remote, mountainside village of Naranjito, about three hours drive from Santiago, Dominican Republic. Together, three dentists and six assistants brought smiles to the faces of 110 patients in Dominican Republic—work valued at more than $137,194.

This was the first year that our annual mission trip partnered with another charity organization (Somos Amigos) allowing us to volunteer alongside other dental & medical professionals from across the country, UK, Haiti and DR. From providing direct patient care to distributing pharmaceutical supplies, our team came home with new skills, new friends, and a new appreciation for running water!

Click for a brief review of this year's mission trip.

Back to New Jersey

Back at our dental home in Bloomfield, NJ, we have seen an explosion of patients, now hailing from 55 different cities across the state!

As you know, patients of KinderSmile Community Oral Health Center can be privately insured (6.6%), insured by a state Medicaid plan (83.7%), or uninsured entirely (9.7%). These last two categories of patients face a slew of barriers to accessing dental care, but the most common reasons why kids with Medicaid or who are uninsured do not get to see a dentist are cost and time.

Consider this:

A recent survey conducted by the Montclair Community Council for Young Children found that there are six (6) dentists located in Montclair,—the town adjacent to our Bloomfield home base, and the location where KinderSmile Foundation was established more than a decade ago—but there are none (0) who accept any forms of Medicaid or NJ FamilyCare.

What good is an insurance plan if there are no providers who accept it? Further, if Medicaid recipients can't even access healthcare, what hope is there for children who are uninsured?

We are grateful for your support in providing a solution.

More than 1,300 children children have been served at our dental home in the first half of 2018. These are kids whose ...

Parents have made countless phone calls between multiple jobs and families to take care of, searching for a dentist who would accept their insurance and who have appointment times that don't interfere with their workday.
School nurses have knocked on the doors of healthcare professionals to make exceptions for their students with chronic headaches stemming from cavities long untreated.
Oral health needs are finally being addressed at KinderSmile Community Oral Health Center, where we care about their well-being, regardless of their family's income.

Someone very special came to visit:

Meet the Members of Our Village

KinderSmile Foundation is made possible by supporters like you, including the team of dedicated staff & volunteers who work everyday to give kids a dental head start in our community.

Since opening two years ago, our "village" has grown immensely, and I am so proud to introduce all of the wonderful women in the article linked below.

Click to meet the team.

There are so many individuals and organizations who support KinderSmile Foundation in ways big and small. Every ounce of effort is truly appreciated by myself; our Chief Operating Officer, Nicole Panzica Whittam; our Board members, Dr. Sara Kalambur (Program Director), Andrea McDonagh, Dr. Ethan Glickman, Laurence Whittam, and Dorrie Gagnon RDH; and, of course, our patients!

We look forward to increasing our transparency and accountability with all of our supporters and partners by reviving this "Tooth Talk" newsletter on a quarterly basis. In our next issue, we are excited to highlight our new and deepend community partnerships, such as with Oral Health America, Saint James Health of Newark, and the Bloomfield Department of Health & Human Services.

I also have the most heartwarming news to share from Haiti ... Stay tuned!

Blessings,

Nicole McGrath-Barnes, DDS, FACD
President & CEO
KinderSmile Foundation

#ItTakesAVillage

Our Mission: To provide underserved children with access to comprehensive dental care and educate children & their families about the importance of dental hygiene.

Our Programs:

KSOHP - KinderSmile Oral Health Program
Bringing cavity-prevention into schools & community events
PHWP - Perinatal Health & Wellness Program
Promoting dental care during pregnancy & early childhood
CSLP - Community Service Learning Program
Youth mentorship through volunteer work & internships
GBAS - Give Back A Smile
Volunteer opportunities for dental professionals

Our Vision: A future where every child has access to a dentist and preventable dental diseases are eradicated.

Celebrating CSLP 2018

KinderSmile Community Service Learning Program is so much more than the annual mission trip. Friday, 9/07, we welcomed new Fall 2018 interns and recognized the achievements of our past student leaders with an inaugural CSLP Orientation Celebration.

Most Creative Award
Imani Armour
Best Team Player Award
Sagar Dave
Outstanding Growth Award
Sara Emara
Star Leadership Award
Jim Skaff
Initiative of the Year Award
Linda Ali & Stephanie Smith

Learn more about Linda & Stephanie's award-winning initiative by visiting www.kindersmile.org/RUToothFairies.

1st Tooth, 1st Visit

If you were to survey a room full of people, "At what age should a child visit the dentist for the first time?"
you will most likely receive a wide spread of opinions. What we often hear from members of the community is a lack of concern for baby teeth, because they are "going to fall out anyway."

But for how long should decay be allowed to fester in a child's mouth? Ideally—no time at all! With proper dental hygiene, nutritious meals, and regular dental check-ups, all children can reach school age cavity-free. It's from ignoring oral health in the first few years which creates scenarios we often face in KinderSmile Oral Health Program: Four & five year olds are already suffering from childhood caries (cavities), baby bottle teeth, and oral infections.

Four year old with baby bottle decay at a Montclair preschool.
4 year old with baby bottle decay
at a Montclair preschool.

These are the sort of topics covered in KinderSmile Perinatal Health & Wellness Program, the learning initiative which empowers pregnant and recently postpartum women with information about their babies' & their own oral health. Most importantly, it links them to a dental home where they can actually receive the dental care that their learning the importance of, regardless of their insurance or immigration status.

Our team and our participating moms are enormously grateful to the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey for sponsoring the second year of PHWP, which will provide free education & dental care to 75 uninsured moms by February 2019.

Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey