Dental Clinic at Walker Methodist Health Center receives 2016 Innovation Award

LeadingAge National named the Walker Methodist Health Center Dental Clinic as the recipient of its 2016 Innovations Award. LeadingAge is the national organization of 6,000+ not-for-profit organizations representing the entire field of aging services, including 38 state partners. The award will be presented in October at the organization's annual meeting.

The clinic was launched in 2006 in partnership with the School of Dentistry. Since that time, faculty and staff have provided treatment for 2,300 patients and the clinic has been a geriatric education site for more than 300 oral health professionals. A recently completed facilities expansion doubled the clinic's capacity for services. The new clinic will serve as home to the dental school's Oral Health Services for Older Adults Program, with care provided by faculty dentists and geriatric dental residents. The clinic is a rotation site for senior dental/dental hygiene students who care for patients under the supervision of Mary Owen, DDS, MS, and Stephen Shuman, DDS, MS, who led the expansion in collaboration with Walker's leadership and dental team.