The Deamonte Driver Project with Sayo Adunola

Healthy Turtle contributor and senior PCH student Sayo Adunola is planning to attend dental school next year, and so for today's article, she is addressing the ongoing efforts to improve dental health here in PG County--particularly those inspired by the tragic death of Deamonte Driver. For more on Driver and the program he inspired, go here and here for recent news articles.
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The Story of Deamonte Driver

Deamonte Driver, a twelve-year-old boy from Prince George’s County, Md. died on February 25, 2007 because of a brain abscess caused by bacteria from an untreated infected tooth. This tragic event could have been prevented, since there are proven measures to prevent tooth decay. Even at this late stage of his dental disease, as little as eighty dollars spent on a timely extraction could have saved his life. This is a story of both access to professional health care and of the need to inform the public about self-care and community programs.

Deamonte’s story is tragic and has illuminated the issue of oral health care for disadvantaged children. This situation cannot be overlooked because there are many others like Deamonte who lack access to care. Also, since his death other deaths of children attributable to dental diseases have been reported.

In an effort to address oral health issues, Governor O’Malley, Secretary Colmers, and the General Assembly created a Dental Action Committee in June of 2007. The Dental Action Committee provides recommendations for Maryland to improve its oral health services. Currently, fewer than one in three of Maryland’s 500,000 children who are Medicaid recipients received any dental services last year.

The reasons for this are many. One important reason is the limited participation of Maryland dentists in Medicaid--of about 5,500 dentists in the state of Maryland, only about 900 accept Medicaid patients. This is primarily due to low reimbursement rates and to the demands of the bureaucratic aspects of the Medicaid program. On the public’s side, oral health does not register among their top concerns. Other factors such as poverty, cultural differences, transportation issues among others contribute to barriers that affect both self-care and access to professional care.

The Deamonte Driver Dental Project

The story of Deamonte Driver has lead to the development of new dental projects and laws regarding children’s oral health both locally and nationally. The Deamonte Driver Dental Project was launched in November 2008 by Dr. Hazel J. Harper, Dr. Belinda Carver-Taylor, and other committed dentists who aimed to eliminate health disparities by expanding access to quality oral health care. The mission of the project is “to provide grassroots solutions to children’s’ dental health crisis…stamp out the epidemic of tooth decay by increasing access and providing early intervention…[and] to create a successful, sustainable model program for other counties.” The project is sponsored by Robert T. Freeman Dental Society Foundation, a professional association comprised of African-American dentists from Prince George’s County and Washington, DC. Also, Governor Martin O’Malley, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) Secretary John Colmers, and members of the Dental Action Committee support the Deamonte Driver Dental Project.

Notable government departments and organizations are also providing financial support. The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has committed $288,000 for the purchase of a fully equipped mobile van. Also, the Aetna Foundation has offered a $31,500 grant for the project. Also, as a result of recommendations made by the Dental Action Committee, Governor O’Malley put $14 million in the FY09 budget, in state and federal funds, to raise reimbursement rates for dentists treating Medicaid children. The governor realizes that it is critical to provide routine but potentially life-saving care for children.

The mobile van will serve nine schools: the Foundation School (Prince George’s County), the Foundation School (Montgomery County), Adelphi Elementary, District Heights Elementary, Morningside Elementary, William Beanes Elementary, Seat Pleasant Elementary, Concord Elementary, and Mathew Henson Elementary. Children will be provided with diagnostic, preventive, and simple restorative dental services on the van. If a child needs urgent care and if services cannot be provided on the van, the Project Coordinators have enlisted dentists to provide services in their private offices.

The Deamonte Driver Dental Project will provide services to Medicaid-eligible and uninsured children in Prince George’s County. Currently, dentists that are part of the project are screening children in local schools. After the screenings, each child receives a dental report card to take home that indicates needed follow-up dental services-either preventative, routine, or emergency.

The dentists are hoping to complete all the screenings by the end of April.
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Thanks to Sayo Andunola for contributing this article.