ANN ARBOR—As they have every year for more than a quarter-century, dental students from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry this summer will once again be providing oral health care to migrant workers and their families in the Traverse City area. This year’s program, now in its 28th year, begins June 25 and ends Aug. 3.

Unlike some previous years, when services were provided at three locations, dental students this summer will provide care at four locations in northwest lower Michigan: Traverse City – Northwest Michigan Health Services, Inc.,        10767 Traverse Highway Elk Rapids Middle School Kaleva Community Elementary School Glen Lake Elementary School

The students will provide a range of services including cleaning, extractions, fillings, and X-rays. They will also talk to adults and children about the importance of proper oral health care.

Portable equipment—including X-ray machines, dental chairs, drills, air, and water—will be set up in elementary schools in Kaleva and Glen Lake and the middle school in Elk Rapids. Children of the migrant workers will receive dental care during the day at the schools while their parents are working. Adult migrant workers will receive oral health care in the evening at the Northwest Michigan Health Services (NMHS) clinic in Traverse City. The School of Dentistry and NMHS have been partners in the program for 23 years. Program funding comes primarily from the NMHS Migrant Health Program as well as the Michigan Primary Care Association.

Dr. Robert Bagramian, professor of dentistry and director of the migrant worker clinic for the School of Dentistry, said, “This program continues to be very popular with our students and, of course, the patients they serve. Our students have consistently given the program high marks for the opportunities and experiences it offers. We’re fortunate to be able to continue the program because of the support we have received from the State of Michigan and others, including the Michigan Primary Care Association and Northwest Michigan Health Services.”

The program continues to draw more volunteers than there are openings. “This year, we had 56 applications for 24 open positions,” Bagramian said. The senior dental students who were selected for the six-week program are in the upper level of their class, both academically and clinically, and have demonstrated a commitment to serving others.

The students will work for two-week rotations in groups of eight. The student volunteers will staff the clinics and will be supervised by a member of the faculty. This year’s supervisors are Marcella Jimenez and Juliana Almeida. Both have a master’s degree in restorative dentistry. Jimenez supervised last summer’s program.

During last year’s program, nearly 360 patients, both adults and children were treated. Patient visits totaled nearly 900. Dental students placed more than 500 sealants, compared to 218 the previous year, and extracted nearly 100 teeth.

The U-M School of Dentistry is one of the nation’s leading dental schools engaged in oral health care education, research, patient care, and community service. General dental care clinics and specialty clinics providing advanced treatment enable the School to offer dental services and programs to patients throughout Michigan. Classroom and clinic instruction train 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.

School of DentistryMichigan Primary Care Associationmigrant worker clinicMarcella Jimenezhttp://www.dent.umich.edu