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DENTEX Program

Patient Profile

Eliza EphankaBethel, AK

“I’ve lived in Bethel all my life. All my younger children received services at the Dental Health Aide program. Before this clinic we never received any dental services. It was so hard to get an appointment with a dentist. We’d call every Monday. Sometimes they’d tell us to call next week. My first dental experience was scary. I was 6 or 7 years, going to the dentist for a toothache. After that I suffered with toothaches before going back to see the dentist. It’s easier for me to communicate with the Dental Health Aides here as they are local.”

News and Links

Evaluations of the Alaska DHAT Program
- Expanding the Dental Safety Net: A First Look at How Dental Therapists Can Help - The Pew Center on the States – July 2012
- A Review of the Global Literature on Dental Therapists - W.K. Kellogg Foundation – April 2012
- Clinical technical performance of dental therapists in Alaska - James D. Bader, et al – Journal of the American Dental Association – March 2011
- Evaluation of the Dental Health Aide Therapist Workforce Model in Alaska - RTI International – October 2010
- Assessment of Treatment Provided by Dental Health Aide Therapists in Alaska: A Pilot Study - Kenneth Anthony Bolin – Journal of the American Dental Association – November 2008
- A Report on Quality Assessment of Primary Care Provided by Dental Therapists to Alaska Natives - Louis Fiset – September 2005
In the News
- State updates on oral health access issues and mid-level dental providers - W.K. Kellogg Foundation – June 2012
- Dental Insurance, but No Dentists - Louis W. Sullivan – NY Times, April 8, 2012
- A Solution to Rural Alaska’s Dental Problems? - PBS News Hour – November 8, 2011
- Low-Cost Dental Care Ignites Wide Debate - NY Times – November 1, 2010
- Short of Dentists, Maine Adds Teeth to Doctors’ Training - The New York Times 3/2/09
- Dental Therapists discuss oral health - The Press and Journal (Scotland) 6/20/08
- Is there a Dental Therapist in the house? - CBC As It Happens 5/7/08
- In Alaska: The Dental Therapist Will See You Now - NPR.org – The Bryant Project 4/29/08
- Dental Clinics, Meeting a Need with No Dentist - New York Times 4/28/08
Other Articles
- First Alaskans – A Reason to Smile - PDF
- Village Voices – Summer 2012 - PDF