ANN ARBOR—
The University of Michigan School of Dentistry will provide dental care to migrant workers and their families in northern Michigan beginning June 21. The summer program, in its 26th year, will continue through Aug. 1.
“This program again demonstrates the University’s and the School of Dentistry’s commitment to the State of Michigan,” said Robert Bagramian, professor of dentistry and director of the Migrant Worker Program.
Bagramian says U-M School of Dentistry student volunteers will staff the clinics with faculty supervision, working for two-week stints in groups of eight. The volunteer program is popular with students.
“This year, as in previous years, we received twice as many applications as there were positions available. But we could only select 24 for the program,” he said.
Senior dental students who participate in the program are in the upper level of their class academically and clinically and have demonstrated a commitment to serving others.
A range of dental services focusing on prevention, cleanings, tooth extractions, and fillings will be offered. Services will be provided in Suttons Bay in Leelanau County; Elk Rapids in Antrim County; and Kaleva, in Manistee County.
Portable equipment, including X-ray machines, dental chairs, drills, air, and water will be set up in local schools, where children of the migrant workers will receive dental care during the day; adults several evenings each week.
“The need for this program has been demonstrated time and again,” Bagramian said. “During the 65 days we provided care to the migrant community last summer, School of Dentistry students had more than 930 appointments. They examined more than 300 parents and migrant children, placed 390 sealants, 250 topical fluoride treatments, filled nearly 670 tooth surfaces, and extracted more than 135 teeth.”
Funds for the Migrant Worker Program come primarily from the Northwest Michigan Health Services Migrant Health Program and the Michigan Primary Care Association.
The U-M School of Dentistry is one of the nation’s leading dental schools engaged in oral health care education, research, and patient care. General dental care clinics and specialty clinics providing advanced treatment enable the School to offer dental services and programs to patients throughout southeast Michigan and the state. Classroom and clinic instruction trains future dentists, dental specialists, and dental hygienists for practice in private offices, hospitals, academia, and public agencies. Research seeks to discover and apply new knowledge that can help patients worldwide.
More information is available on the Web at http://www.dent.umich.edu.
E-mail: jmastey@umich.edu

School of Dentistryhttp://www.dent.umich.edujmastey@umich.edu