Oral health screenings on campus
The Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral health (ASDOH) will hold oral health screenings given by second year students of Mesa Community College’s (MCC) Dental Hygiene program on Saturday, Feb. 2.
“A health history will be taken,” says Debbie Holexa, MCC”s Dental Hygiene program director, “then an assessment of the gums and bone as these support the teeth.”
These oral health screenings take place at the beginning of each semester after second year students have completed their lab and clinical requirements at ASDOH. “Dental hygiene students only progress in their education through the participation of community members such as this,” Debbie says. The students during their clinical requirements care for individuals with dental issues such as gum disease or puffy gums, and deep-scale cleaning,
On Feb. 2, ASDOH and MCC students are seeking candidates who haven’t had dental health screenings for the past three years or have been diagnosed with dental health issues. Treatment isn’t provided and selected patients will be charged for varying services provided.
“X rays will be taken in order to see the teeth and bone that are not visible when looking into the mouths, “ says Debbie Holexa, adding that to attain copies of these X Rays will cost twenty dollars and can be collected during the hygiene clinic hours of 5:30 to 8:30 pm Monday through Thursdays.
“Costs are determined by the oral health care of the patients,” says Debbie Holexa. “They will range from fifty dollars to two-hundred-fifty dollars for comprehensive oral health care.”
Debbie adds that these oral health screenings are not only important for the students in their education but also important for the individuals receiving the care on a first come first serve basis. “It is important to take care of the mouth because research is now connecting an infected mouth to many other diseases and conditions throughout the entire body. The mouth is the gateway to the body.”
This oral health screening will take place at 5855 E. Still Circle, Mesa on Saturday Feb. 2, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
