CHICAGO, July 21 — Oral Health America (OHA) encourages collaborative learning among its Smiles Across America® (SAA) Program Partners across the country who provide oral healthcare and education to children in school-based and school-linked settings. Thanks in part to a $10,000 grant from the Henry Schein Cares Foundation, 60 SAA partners will be able to gather together during OHA’s bi-annual National Share and Learn Conference in Philadelphia this summer.
“Our SAA Program Partners tell us on a consistent basis how much they benefit from learning from each other,” said OHA President and CEO Beth Truett. “These opportunities to connect SAA partners with one another are part of the value-added technical assistance that OHA offers to the teams who are addressing the needs of some of America’s most vulnerable children every day. We are grateful to the Henry Schein Cares Foundation for their support of our program and mission.”
SAA Program Partner Kids Smiles will cohost the conference, with a goal to positively impact the health and education of low-income children who bear 80 percent of the disease burden for dental caries. SAA Program Partners from across the country will gather to learn about the process of human centered design to better understand the issues, communities and opportunities for improving oral health services provided in school-based and school-linked settings.
“Henry Schein is proud to support OHA’s Share and Learn conference, which brings together a nationwide force of healthcare professionals committed to improving the oral health of at-risk school children,” said Steve Kess, President of the Henry Schein Cares Foundation. “We share OHA’s commitment to expanding access to care for underserved populations and improving lives through increased education and awareness of the importance of good oral health and look forward to continuing our work together.”
OHA launched SAA in 2004 to provide oral disease prevention services to children who are uninsured or underinsured due to issues of poverty. During the 2014-2015 school year, OHA’s network of 304 SAA Program Partners reached more than 460,000 children in 47 states with services including dental sealants, fluoride varnish and family education. Learn more about SAA at www.oralhealthamerica.org.
