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f DT page 2A TK DT DENTAL TRIBUNE | May 2010 News 3 AD By Fred Michmershuizen, Online Editor Americans line up for free care Despite the passage of health care reform legislation earlier this year, many Americans today lack the financial resources to afford medical and dental care. As a result, thousands of patients are lining up at events in places such as Los Angeles, Chicago and even Idaho Falls, Idaho, to receive free care. One nonprofit volunteer organi- zation, called Remote Area Medi- cal (RAM), staged a weeklong free clinic in Los Angeles from April 27 to May 3. At the event, at which volunteer medical and dental practitioners offered free care daily from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m., the demand for services was so high that a wristband system was put in place to ensure the order- ly handling of the large numbers of people who showed up. RAM was founded in 1985 by Stan Brock to offer free health-care ser- vices, including dental and vision care, to people in underdeveloped countries. Since then, the organiza- tion has also been running free clin- ics here in the United States. “There really is a problem here in the United States,” Brock told CBS News. “It’s not just in the Amazon and in places like Haiti.” Today, Brock said, “64 percent of every- thing we do is here in America.” Over the years, RAM has success- fully held hundreds of free clinics providing services to thousands of men, women and children. According to the organization, dental services are one of its core offerings and have provided relief to thousands of patients over the years. Poor dental health is a common problem in the hills of the southern Appalachians, where RAM’s services are desperately needed. Patients often arrive with seri- ous dental problems, often affecting their overall health. In a single visit, many of these can be improved. The RAM dental program has grown from offering only emer- gency extractions in the early days to include restorations, cleanings, fluoride treatments and oral hygiene instruction today. Even advanced procedures, such as dentures and simple root canals for anterior teeth, can be performed. Dedicated volunteer dentists pro- vide services free of charge. In all, 300 medical volunteers served 1,200 patients a day for the recent weeklong RAM event in Los Angeles. At a RAM event there in 2009, more than 6,000 patients were treated. But not all free care events are so large. In Idaho Falls, Idaho, recently, Dr. Tom Anderson of Premier Dental Care organized a local event called “Great Friday” in which 40 profes- sional volunteers treated more than 100 people, some of whom had to wait more than five hours. “It was so much fun, and the patients were so gracious,” Ander- son told Dental Tribune. Two other dentists — Dr. Gene Hoge of Pocatello, Idaho, and Dr. John Hisel of Boise, Idaho — also participated. Anderson credited his wife, Lisa, for organizing the event. He also said companies like Sullivan Schein Dental provided much-needed sup- plies and equipment. Anderson said Shae Davis and Dennis Everly of g DT page 4 About 40 dental professionals donated their time for ‘Great Friday.’ (Photos/ Provided by Premier Dental Care)