|
|
Sophomore Allison Castro smiled as she looked through the tiny dental loupes attached to her protective glasses, allowing a magnified look at Jim Foby’s teeth as he lay on an examination chair in SUNY Farmingdale’s new Dental Hygiene Care Center.
Inserting a wand-like device called an intraoral camera into his mouth, she pushed a button, snapping several digital photos. Instantaneously, the images appeared on a large computer screen a few feet away. She pointed out small signs of plaque on Foby’s teeth, which were fine.
"That’s amazing," Foby said, staring up at the screen.
Castro was one of more than 20 dental hygiene sophomores working on patients in the sparkling new clinic on a recent March afternoon, cleaning teeth and dispensing dental advice to their patients. The $2.5 million center has been open to the public since January.
The center, located on campus, would still be just a good idea if it weren’t for the dedication of UUP members such as professors Judy Friedman, Sharon Struminger and department of dental hygiene Chair Laura Mueller-Joseph.
UUP Farmingdale Chapter President Barbara Maertz was instrumental in obtaining a $1.7 million state grant to refurbish the clinic.
Friedman, a retired professor and past department chair, hatched the idea for a new center almost a dozen years ago. There certainly was a need; much of the equipment was aging and outmoded, breaking down frequently. Some of the equipment had been in use since the mid-20th century, purchased after the college’s dental hygiene program began in 1946.
The facility itself was cramped and difficult for students and instructors to work in, said Mueller-Joseph. The exam chairs in the old center were so close together that patients, when reclined, were literally head-to-head as students worked on them.
Unable to get college funding for the renovation, Friedman undertook a grass-roots effort in 2002 to raise money for the center, organizing student phone banks, targeting college alumni and corporate sponsors for donations. The two-year initiative, achieved with Mueller-Joseph’s help and the college president’s support, raised $45,000.
Unfortunately, that support didn’t include funding for the project, which left Friedman, Struminger and Mueller-Joseph at loose ends. Enter Maertz, a SUNY Farmingdale chemical technology instructional support tech and active UUP Farmingdale chapter leader, who was aware of the renovation plan.
She invited Mueller-Joseph to meet with Assemblyman Robert Sweeney
(D-Lindenhurst) to ask for $75,000 to replace the clinic’s compressor unit used to operate the dental tools. Sweeney supported the entire renovation plan and suggested they present it to state Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr. (R-Merrick). The department presented the plan at the chapter’s annual Legislative Brunch in 2004 and 2005.
Working with Maertz, Mueller-Joseph and other UUP members, Fuschillo and Sweeney secured a $1.7 million member item grant to help pay for the new facility. Friedman’s phone bank money and additional college funding made up the difference.
"UUP played an integral part in this," said Friedman. "Barbara just really kept it up. We couldn’t have done it without the union."
"When it comes to dealing with the state, it’s about patience and perseverance," said Maertz. "We had a committed group of people and the politicians saw that."
The new center is in the old center’s space, but with many noticeable changes. There’s a new professional waiting room and reception area built across the hall. The center is clean and bright, with its own dental tool sterilization room and partitioned state-of-the-art examination areas, which meet federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations. More than a dozen licensed hygienists and dentists on staff – all UUP members – supervise and teach students at the center.
"I think it’s better here than at the (dental office) where I work," said student Sarah Wironsteki, who works as a dental assistant in a local dental practice. "We don’t have an interoral camera there."
The center, which is open to the public, serves about 3,000 patients each year. It provides services to Head Start programs in Nassau County at no cost. SUNY Farmingdale students, faculty and staff also receive free care.
Senior citizens and patients referred through nearby community centers come to the clinic for dental care, offered at reduced prices to the community – a huge benefit for many without dental insurance. A comprehensive dental exam costs $20 for seniors, $25 for adults and $15 for children under 16.
And that always gives Friedman cause to flash a shiny smile.
"This program, this facility, has and will continue to change lives," she said.
– Michael Lisi