University students to staff new affordable clinic
Midwestern University will open a new clinic in June; the clinic will be staffed by students and members of faculty staff and will offer a range of affordable treatments.
The new clinic will open in Glendale and will offer patients treatment for around half the cost of normal practices. The students and staff members will treat conditions ranging from preventative treatments for young children to denture care for adults. The new facility will cost around 38 million dollars and students are looking forward to ditching their books and dummies for the real thing.
Staff at Midwestern University have already started looking at potential patients and it is expected that appointments slots will start to fill up soon. Staff are expecting patients to come from miles around to benefit from the affordable care on offer at the Glendale clinic. Patients with more serious oral health conditions will be referred for treatment at alternative facilities, while patients wanting treatments such as routine check-ups, extractions, fillings, dentures, crowns and implants will be invited to come to the Glendale clinic.
The dental programme at Midwestern started in 2008 and students were encouraged to gain practical skills by practicing on lifelike dummies from day one. The students are now raring to go and will start seeing real patients in June; they will work under the supervision of trained members of staff.
Arizona currently has a shortage of dentists, as the ratio of dentists to patients is lower than the national average. Currently one dentist serves around two and a half thousand patients, while the national average is one to two thousand patients. The new clinic will help to provide care for many more patients and will target those without insurance, as they often cannot afford dental care. The clinic will also accept private insurance plans as well as state-run policies that currently cover children’s care.
The new facility will feature a range of modern, spacious rooms, state of the art technology and innovative technology; the clinic has a separate paediatric area, surgical theatres and facilities for disabled patients.
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