Yendel Jones: No financial relationships to disclose
Description: vulnerable of the vulnerable, foster children. In 2019, we identified this subset of our population as being low utilizers of dental services. In collaboration with the AR Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) we began a journey of transforming the oral health of foster children in Arkansas. We launched this project at the height of COVID-19, at a time when dental offices were being closed, and over the last 24 months have made dramatic improvements. Taking a baseline of only 42.8% of foster children having received dental services to nearly 56% utilizing dental services as of December 2021. This is a perfect example of identifying a battle small enough to win but big enough to matter. Please join us in learning of the challenges and strategies we deployed in partnership with DCFS to improve the health of foster children - One Smile at a Time.