May 19 Inner-City Dental Clinic to Provide Free Care

March 2012

Grants totaling $49,000 have been awarded by the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving to support the fourth annual free Inner-City Dental Clinic to be held Saturday, May 19, at Community Health Services, 500 Albany Ave. in Hartford.

The clinic, held in partnership with the West Indian Foundation, Inc., will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., on a first come, walk-in basis. In addition to dental treatment, the clinic will also supply free screenings for HIV, blood pressure, diabetes, vision and oral cancer.

Last year, also with support from the Hartford Foundation, a staff of 70 volunteer dental professionals treated approximately 300 patients – children and adults. Services included exams, screenings, x-rays, cleanings, fillings, extractions and interim dentures. More than 400 procedures valued at almost $92,000 were performed.

The volunteers included students and faculty from the School of Dental Medicine at the University of Connecticut, private practice dentists, assistants, hygienists and Lions Club members and community volunteers, as well as Community Health Services staff.

Although Connecticut has a relatively low rate of people without health insurance, an estimated 600,000 to 1 million people lack access to dental care.

The grants for the clinic are from seven funds at the Hartford Foundation: the Aaron Marks Foundation Fund, Elwyn V. and Elsie H. Harp Family Foundation Fund, Samuel Roskin Trust, S.A. Johnson Family Fund, Charles B. Cook Fund, Anonymous  No. 38 Fund, and the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund.

Community Health Services is a private, nonprofit, federally qualified, full-service health center, the second oldest health center in the state. While its almost 19,000 clients live mainly in its primary coverage area of North Hartford – designated a Dental Health Professional Shortage Area by the federal government – it serves clients throughout Greater Hartford.

The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is the community foundation for the 29-town Greater Hartford region, dedicated to improving the quality of life for area residents.  The Hartford Foundation receives gifts from thousands of generous individuals and families and in 2011 awarded grants of more than $28 million to a broad range of area nonprofit organizations. For more information about the Hartford Foundation, and its strategic plan, Accelerate Success, visit www.hfpg.org or call 860-548-1888.