The Mobile Services Division is currently made up of two services: the HomeBound/Senior Mobile Unit and the Smile Express Mobile Dental Center.
Originally the Mobile Services Division was established in 1986 through a United Way grant. The initial grant established the HomeBound/Senior Mobile Unit. It visits over 60 long-term care nursing home facilities and several homebound individuals on a regular basis.
All treatment provided by the Dental Center of NWO Mobile Services Division is by a licensed, professional dentist, dental hygienist, and/or a dental assistant.
HomeBound/Senior Mobile Unit Services Include:
Dental oral exams with cancer screening every 6 months
Prophylactic cleaning of teeth every 6 months and x-rays, as needed
Professional cleaning of dentures and partials,
including inscribing resident's names on the prosthetics
Fillings
New dentures
Denture relining
Extractions
Oral health means more than healthy teeth and gums at the Dental Center of Northwest Ohio!
The Dental Center of Northwest Ohio has been firmly established in the community since 1910 as a provider of primary oral health services for underserved children, adults, and seniors throughout Northwest Ohio. Their vision has always been to promote the value of good oral health through education while serving as an advocate for those with limited access to dental care services.
In March of 2006, the vision of the Dental Center of NWO has come full circle with the further development of Mobile Services and the addition of the Smile Express Mobile Dental Center – which brings the dentist to the patient to establish a “dental-life-line connection”.
Smile Express Arrives In Northwest Ohio!
The Dental Center of NWO has identified transportation as the number one issue influencing patients from seeking much needed dental care. Work schedules, childcare issues, distance, travel time, weather, bus schedules and frail health make it difficult for many adults, children, seniors, and their families to get to the dentist. The Smile Express Mobile Dental Center eliminates these barriers by bringing the dentist to the patient.
The Smile Express also provides an opportunity to offer oral health education to these same individuals who frequently have a low "dental I.Q." which is a very important part of this Smile Express Mobile Dental Center.
Every patient visiting the Smile Express will have some form of education offered to them to help them understand the importance of regular, ongoing oral health care. All patients receive a kit containing an appropriate toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash, floss and educational materials with oral health instruction specific to his/her exam findings by an oral health educator. In addition, during the registration process and waiting times, oral health educational videos will be shown on the onboard video system.
The services provided by the professional full-time dental staff will include, but will not be limited to:
cleanings (prophlaxis)
diagnostic x-rays
fluoride treatments
sealants
fillings
pulpotomies
root canals
extractions
making of full and complete: crowns, dentures, sport guards, bite guards, space maintainer, and thumb sucking appliances
oral health education and instruction through printed educational material & videos
We bring the dentist to the patient - establishing a "dental-life-line connection"
Smile Express - 1st Full-Time, Full-Service Mobile Dental Center in Northwest Ohio!
Click Here to Read More About the Smile Express Mobile Dental Center!
Governor Bob Taft Proclaims the Smile Express as
“the first full-time, full-service Mobile Dental Center in Northwest Ohio”!
The Smile Express is scheduled to make regular visits at schools, nursing homes, rural community sites, hospitals and various other locations in the following 18 Northwest Ohio counties: Lucas, Wood, Williams, Fulton, Ottawa, Erie, Sandusky, Henry, Defiance, Paulding, Putnam, Hancock, Seneca, Huron, Wyandot, Hardin, Allen, and Van Wert.
