Dentists step up for families without dental coverage

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Saturday morning in Golden Valley, dentists were hard at work with drills, suction machines and all of the other necessary tools to clean and fix teeth. On this busy day, every one of the professionals at Bassett Creek Dental did the work strictly on a volunteer basis. "We have approximately 20-25 volunteers here in our office, we're gonna see between 35-40 kids over our half day, and really trying to provide as much care as we can give them in the one day that they're here," said Dr. Todd Tsuchiya, a dentist with Bassett Creek Dental. Bassett Creek Dental was one of 200 clinics across Minnesota taking part in an annual event called "Give Kids a Smile," where children whose families can't afford or access quality dental care, receive that care free of charge. "It is not the solution, but it definitely has an impact amongst the kids in our state," Dr. Tsuchiya said. The service also has an impact on parents such as Vanessa Padua-Evans of Minneapolis. "Presently, I'm a graduate student, and my husband's a chef, so financially, it helps," she said. She brought in her 5-year-old daughter, Margaux, for her first-ever visit to the dentist, and it turned out to be quite the memorable trip. "Going to the dentist for the first time and them saying, 'Oh, you have your permanent molars, let's seal that. You have two cavities, let's fix that.' She's like 'oh.' It can be overwhelming, yes," Padua-Evans said. For these dental professionals, it's all in a day's work, yet that work also includes an educational component about preventive care. "So we just spend a fair amount of time on oral hygiene instruction, tips in terms of diet, things that they do on a daily basis to help maintain themselves and improve their dental health in the future," Dr. Tsuchiya said. In the future, Padua-Evans hopes to have dental insurance, but if not, she'll look to come back here again next year. "I'm super grateful. I just think it's incredible," she said. Meanwhile, dental professionals say Minnesota ranks dead last in the United States in Medicaid funding rates for pediatric dental care. As a result, a coalition comprised of the Minnesota Dental Association and others are working with the state legislature to improve that reimbursement. Delane Cleveland http://twelve.tv http://www.facebook.com/12localnews http://www.facebook.com/12localsports http://twitter.com/12sports http://twitter.com/12localnews Learn about our mobile app - http://bit.ly/CH12app Channel 12 is on Comcast cable in the northwest suburbs of Minneapolis and includes the cities Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Crystal, Golden Valley, Maple Grove, New Hope, Osseo, Plymouth and Robbinsdale.