GRANT00184

University of Alabama (UAB) Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Dentistry will partner with Kid Check, Sight Savers of America, and United Way’s Success By 6, to provide health and dental screenings to school-aged children in the Birmingham, AL regional area during the first year of planning to pilot test capabilities to expand statewide. UAB will leverage the existing infrastructure of Site Savers of America to replicate their national model of improving the delivery of vision follow-up care and apply the model to dental care; United Way Success by 6 will add a key component to the partnership by engaging the thousands of children currently impacted by the health and education services provided through the program which will be expanded to include oral health; in conjunction with the Birmingham District Dental Society, an expansive referral system will be established to ultimately provide care for children in need at a statewide level. The Smiles for AL Children’s Dental Initiative will infuse multidisciplinary oral health training, screening, and treatment coordination into UAB’s existing prevention activities and public health infrastructure.