A learning opportunity that doubles as community help

In his fourth and final year in the College of Dentistry, Ryan Burkhart ’24 DDS was working at a dental clinic in an underserved area of Dayton, Ohio, when a woman came in complaining of severe mouth pain. Her symptoms indicated acute gingivitis, a gum disease that can be caused by distress, among other things. He asked if she was experiencing stress in her life, and she burst into tears.

The patient received more that day than treatment for bacteria and a prescription for an antibiotic. Burkhart listened to her and explained the connections between stress, oral health and general wellness. He encouraged her to prioritize self-care.

“Counseling someone like that showed me that there’s more to being a dentist than just what’s wrong with a specific tooth,” Burkhart says.

The lessons, for student and patient, were made possible by the College of Dentistry’s Oral Health Improvement through Outreach (OHIO) Project, which gives fourth-year, faculty-supervised students the opportunity to provide care at 30 Medicaid-qualified sites across the state, plus a mobile clinic. While the connection between oral health and overall wellness is well documented, many people have no access to dental care. In fact, a 2021 survey identified it as the greatest unmet health care need among Ohio children.

The college created the OHIO Project in 2003 under the leadership of Dr. Canise Bean ’95 MPH, then director of community education and now a professor emerita. During their senior year, students spend two-week blocks at community health centers, health departments and private practices. They spend an average of 43 days at the sites. In 2023, 116 students participated.

“Students gain empathy and learn about patients’ socioeconomic conditions and barriers of access to care by encountering patients from very diverse backgrounds,” Bean says. She is proud that many graduates start practices in underserved areas and that many alumni work at the project’s partner sites, dedicated to serving some of Ohio’s most vulnerable residents.

One such alum is Heather Crockett ’08 DDS, dental director at Lower Lights Christian Health Center in Columbus. She supervises OHIO Project students.

“We’re a small clinic with only one dentist,” Crockett says. “Bringing students on board has enabled us to provide excellent treatment efficiently. For patients, this means fewer appointments, less time off work and fewer challenges, such as finding child care. Our partnership with the students has been incredibly rewarding.”

While taking part, Madison Mettey ’24 DDS says she treated a woman with severe gum disease who had not seen a dentist for 10 years and a homeless man who walked to a rural clinic in the rain. “Besides techniques,” she says, “you also learn soft skills: how to listen to patients and adapt treatment to their needs in less than ideal circumstances.”

Video: OHIO Project

Building on the program’s success, the College of Dentistry has hired two faculty members to create more formal evaluation tools and refine geographic- and population-specific delivery models. Plans are in motion to purchase new mobile coaches to expand outreach ­— a similar program sends students in mobile coaches to Columbus-area schools to care for kids.

Mettey will be cheering the progress. “I can’t imagine not doing the OHIO Project,” she says. “I wish there were more sites everywhere in Ohio.”

Hang on: The College of Dentistry is on it.