By Ralph Fuccillo, President of the
DentaQuest Foundation
Health outcomes
have improved vastly over the past few years for many Americans, especially when
it comes to infant mortality and life expectancy. However, significant health
inequities still persist in this country and oral health is no exception.
According to
the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, more
than 50 million Americans are living in areas with insufficient dental
care.Tooth decay is still the most common childhood disease. Good oral
health is the gateway to a person’s overall health and wellness, so without access
to care or education, preventable ailments like dental caries and gum disease
can build up to become more painful and costly than necessary.
In 2015, it’s unacceptable
that these inequities exist, and that people are suffering from diseases that
are preventable. That’s why the DentaQuest Foundation, along with our
ever-growing network of grantees and partners, has made it our mission to reach
the people who do not have access to regular care due to their race, age,
income, language, health literacy and geographic location. We believe everyone
should have the same opportunity to live a healthy life, and with nearly 83
million people in the United States facing dental care barriers, we still have
a lot of work to do.
To drive our
mission forward, we recently launched the Grassroots Engagement Strategy, a
grant-making initiative supporting local, community based organizations. This
initiative supports our Oral Health 2020 goal of changing the public perception
of oral health - helping people realize that dental pain, tooth loss and
restoration don’t have to be facts of life or just an accepted part of getting
older.
We’re working
to create a new social norm where people can expect oral health. If we want to #expectoralhealth, the
changes we need must be driven by those most impacted when the existing systems
fail. Earlier this year, we selected 20 community-based organizations in
six states including Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania and
Virginia, to receive two $50,000 grants over the next year. The grantee
organizations range from direct service providers to civic engagement and
advocacy organizations, all of which are already active in promoting health
equity and the pursuit of social justice for a diverse number of populations.
The grants will fund these organizations to analyze the oral health landscape
in their communities, enact a plan to engage stakeholders on a local level, and
ultimately improve oral health in the places where they live and work.
Network
development is key to all of our grantmaking initiatives. The Grassroots
Engagement Strategy now gives local change agents the opportunity to have their
voices heard amongst the our growing network of state, regional and national
partners. Organizations at all levels of the network - from grassroots to
grasstops - will be able to learn from each other what is needed to enhance
oral health, share best practices and work collaboratively to bring about
significant change in oral health financing, care, community and policy
systems.
It is our hope that by working with organizations
we will be able to make significant leaps in our quest to
achieve oral health equity for all and meet the Oral Health 2020 goals. We’ll be sure to keep you posted and provide updates on
the initiative’s progress! In the meantime, follow us on Twitter
(@OralHealth2020) and like our Facebook page. Visit www.dentaquestfoundation.org for more information.