Arlington Free Clinic staff volunteered at Mission of Mercy Northern Virginia Dental Day on Friday, March 11, 2016 in Springfield, VA. The Mission of Mercy (MOM) program operates mobile clinics in strategic locations across Virginia, providing preventive, restorative, and surgical dental treatments to more than 4,000 low-income individuals each year.
Although AFC started its own Oral Health Program in 2015, the need greatly exceeds our capacity since nearly every patient could use multiple appointments with our dentist. For now, we are prioritizing patients who are more at-risk for other health complications due to poor oral health (those with cancer or diabetes) before opening up appointments to the rest of our patients. In the first six months of our Oral Health Program, AFC served 214 patients with 500 appointments. By participating in the MOM program, an additional 75 AFC patients were able to receive pro bono cleanings, fillings and extractions — all in one morning!
Thank you to Mission of Mercy for providing free dental services to AFC patients — as well as hundreds of other underserved Northern Virginia residents.
