Improving Oral Care for Everyone in Utah
Have you ever wondered why, in the United States, oral health is treated separately from the rest of our health? Why dental insurance is separate from the rest of our medical benefits? Isn’t oral health an integral part of our overall health? That’s the exact point that Wyatt “Rory” Hume, DDS, PhD, has been trying to make for years. “We have found ample evidence that access to oral care is linked to a person’s overall improved health and higher quality of life,” says Hume, dean of the University of Utah School of Dentistry.
And yet it’s estimated that more than 40% of people who live in the U.S. don’t have dental insurance. Those disparities are compounded for historically excluded populations. Black, Hispanic, and Asian Americans endure higher rates of gum disease and tooth decay. And nearly one-third of low-income adults say that poor dental health affects their ability to interview for a job. Overall, it’s estimated that untreated oral disease causes $45 billion in lost productivity. Those are some of the primary reasons the School of Dentistry was founded in 2012: to provide needed oral care to Utah’s under-resourced residents. Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2022, the school is rapidly growing its robust network of clinics and partnerships. As the primary provider for Medicaid dental benefits in the state, this work expands access to dental eligibility, spares patients from a variety of medical ailments, meets the needs of specific communities, and saves the state money. “We are proud to provide essential services to Utah’s underserved communities,” Hume says.
Conveniently located services are key to keeping people healthy, especially for communities where transportation is challenging. The school recently opened two new community dental clinics in Salt Lake City’s Rose Park neighborhood and Ogden, bringing its total to eight dental clinics throughout the Wasatch Front and St. George. Those clinics serve a variety of patients, including school-age children, New Americans, veterans, elderly, blind and disabled individuals, and those who are undergoing treatment for drug dependency. In addition to creating one of the nation’s best dental school clinic networks, the school also has a Mobile Dental Clinic that reaches under-resourced patients in rural parts of Utah. Since its inception at the beginning of 2022, the mobile clinic has provided important oral care to patients in Blanding, Junction, Beaver, Kanab, Roosevelt, Fort Duchesne, Castle Dale, Price, Manti, Ephraim, Logan, Tremonton, and other Utah towns. This augments a growing network of Medicaid partner dentists throughout the state.
While the mobile clinic provides much-needed care, the end goal is to have dentists who live in the community. Thanks to ongoing funding from the state legislature, the school has also established a career pathway for Utah students in rural areas.
The pathway readies rural undergrad students who are interested in dentistry with personalized mentorship and advising, along with rotations and externships through Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) at select universities and colleges. Rural students can then participate in the school’s Pre-Cap program, which offers a pre-dental yearlong course pathway directly toward formal application to the School of Dentistry. Upon graduation, selected rural students can be eligible for student loan repayment if they elect to practice dentistry in a rural Utah community and treat Medicaid patients.
Meanwhile, the School of Dentistry continues to provide exceptional education to students and develop remarkable potential for research. The Class of 2026 also has a 50/50 ratio of female and male students for the first time ever. “The future of our school looks bright,” Hume says. “Our continued growth puts us in a position to quickly become one of the most important research institutions for community-based oral health in the nation.”
