b'Dental clinic ensures affordable, quality farmworker care OUR IMPACT NUESTRO IMPACTOAs anyone who has been to the dentist knows, a dental bill can rapidly stretch into the thousands 2021-2022of dollars. For farmworkers and their families living on the South Coast, this means that dental care is often out of reach. And that can make the difference for crucial oral intervention. 84 Participants dont come for just one visit, for a cleaning. Its extensive work that they need, because they havent been to the dentist for a whileor some of them for their entire lives,participants have explains Ophlie Vico, Community Health Director for Puente. been served at the Puente dental clinic The Puente dental clinic resumed in October 2021 after a pandemic hiatus. The clinic is staffed participantes han sido by Sonrisas Dental Health and is able to offer services for free, thanks to a contract from theatendidos en la clnica County of San Mateo Healthcare for the Homeless & Farmworker Health (HCH/FH) Program. Thedental en Puenteclinic has had a long waiting list since opening.Puente and Sonrisas have been in partnership since 2015 and know this is a big need in our$ 12,500community. Conversations about opening the clinic for two days a week are happening to address the appointment backlog and the participants who are still on the waitlist. has been provided in Thats great news for local farmworkers who have had multiple extractions and cavities filled nowfinancial assistance that the obstacles of cost and distance have been removed. I think the most important thing for usfor dental bills to a is to do the cleaning carefully, and to brush three times a day at home, says one participant. Wetotal of 9 participants got some good tips on what to do from now on. It is common for participants to return multiplese han proporcionado times for follow-up. One thing is for certain, Puente will continue looking for a more permanenten asistencia financiera space for the dental clinic out to continue serving more participants and their family members.para facturas dentales a un total de 9 participantes10'