U. provides free dental care to Essex County veterans

The VETSmile Program is an initiative offered by the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine that provides Essex County veterans access to free dental treatment and care.

Kardelen Koldas, senior marketing and communications program manager at Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, said that, aside from implants, the program provides access to various services, including regular cleanings, crowns, fillings and dentures.

Michael Conte, senior associate dean for the Office of Clinical Affairs, said that the program was created when the Veterans Administration started contacting various dental schools to pursue involvement.

He said that the money for the program comes from grants funded by the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey, along with the New Jersey Health Foundation and Delta Dental of New Jersey, Koldas added.

Conte said that the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine was initially not able to offer free treatment to veterans until the idea to use grants came from Joan Liljegren, senior director of development at Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, who first applied for funding from a faculty donor in order to treat Holocaust survivors.

Marinelly Rodriguez, a patient representative in the VETSmile's Program, said that they were originally able to provide to other counties when the grant started, but have had to restrict it to Essex County due to a limitation in funding.

Conte said that the program may not be sustainable, and although they would like to widen the scope from Essex County again, funding remains the main issue the program faces.

"This is not just us doing this, this is across the entire United States, every county in New Jersey, there are so many veterans who come out of the military every year who do not receive that dental benefit," Conte said. "That's why the Veterans Administration reached out to us to begin with … that's why we got involved, to help out."

He said that students in the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine are trained in patient-centered trauma-informed care, which specifically deals with the unique issues that veterans face based on their experiences.

Brett Chappell, a fourth-year student at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, said that veterans coming in, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, tend to be apprehensive about aspects of treatment such as opening their mouths and allowing someone to examine inside.

He said that an important factor of treatment was building trust with the veterans and that the collaborative, team-like environment of the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine allowed them to become more comfortable.

Chappell said that the main challenges veterans have when it comes to receiving dental treatment are financial struggles and a lack of awareness and the range of services that are available to them.

He said that veterans only need to attend their appointments in order to be educated on their oral health, treatment options and preventative care and can work one-on-one with student doctors to address their individual needs and questions.

"Being able to educate them is number one for me because there's very limited knowledge," Chappell said. "Late 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s I would say is the majority age range that you treat and the standard of dentistry has changed a lot … so being able to share with them and provide the high level of care they never were able to get is the biggest thing."

Chappell said that after treatment, veterans were more energetic, speaking about the positive impact it had on their lives and how they were grateful for the relationship they were able to foster with their student doctor.

"What veterans do for us by coming in as patients is very special and heartwarming … I feel like there's no better place and nowhere else that I was meant to be in my life than with that person in that chair," Chappell said. "The whole process of seeing a patient from start to finish is just such an honor and privilege … we want to help out and get them back up on their feet and get their smiles back."