About 1,000 people had cavities filled, diseased teeth pulled or their smiles otherwise improved at an event this weekend that provided free dental care.

The goal had been to treat between 1,000 and 1,200 people during the two-day event, which was sponsored by the Texas Dental Association’s Smiles Foundation.

The number ended up being on the low end because many patients had severe oral disease that required lengthier visits with the volunteer dentists, said Debbie McElveen, co-chair of the event.

Dr. Wendy Winarick (left) works on Dorothy Johnson, of Waco, with help from Dana Hunter (right) at the clinic in Waco this weekend.
Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald

The dentists exhausted the supply of 7,000 amoxicillin pills that had been secured to treat infections, McElveen said.

Foundation officials said the need for such antibiotic medications was significantly greater here than at similar events it has hosted across the state, she said.

“It shows how sick they were,” McElveen said of patients.

The event, held Friday and Saturday at McLennan Community College, was one of three “mission of mercy” events the foundation has sponsored this year. They are designed to provide relief to people who cannot afford dental care.

Locations are chosen based on interest from local volunteers. The Waco event took two years of planning to come to fruition.

Because care was offered on a first-come, first-served basis, people started lining up the previous evening, McElveen said.

Unfortunately, the high demand forced organizers to turn away about 300 people Friday and 200 people Saturday, she said.

Others were rejected for care because of underlying health conditions or because their dental problems could not be adequately treated in a temporary setting, McElveen said.

Still, McElveen said, organizers feel the event was a success. The value of care received by the average patient was $738.29. In total, $731,648 worth of services were provided, she said.

To pull that off, the event was staffed by about 60 dentists and at least 700 additional volunteers, she said.

Dr. Martin Starr, one of the event’s organizers, said tooth extractions were the most common procedure performed. That included wisdom teeth being pulled.

Most of the patients were adults, which is a reflection of the fact that there is virtually no public funding for adult dental care, Starr said.

Low-income children, on the other hand, can receive dental care through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Some patients had put off dental care for a few years because of financial struggles, Starr said. Others had not seen a dentist in decades, if ever, he said.

Lines overflow for a free dental clinic held this weekend in Waco.
Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald

Either way, many of the patients had been living with considerable pain, Starr said. One man, for instance, needed two root canals and two fillings, he said.

“He could not have been more appreciative,” Martin said of the patient.

Starr also treated several pregnant women who had oral infections. Helping them was particularly gratifying, he said, since such infections have been linked to pre-term birth and other problems for mother and baby, he said.

cculp@wacotrib.com

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