New dentists volunteer at Kalihi clinic
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Health Writer
At Kokua Kalihi Valley's dental clinic, 25-year-old Filipo Toelau got the treatment he needed — a root canal — through a program that links young dentists completing their training with clinics that serve low-income communities.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser
Toelau, a Kalihi resident, is typical of the patients served at the clinic. He didn't go to the dentist until he had a painful tooth. In fact, he said, it was his first dental visit ever.
Anita Sharma and Joseph Chu are among the volunteer dentists at Kokua Kalihi Valley who care for patients who can't afford dental services.
He was impressed by the friendly, helpful staff. "I like the way they serve you," he said.
The dental residents were placed at Kokua Kalihi Valley, a community health center, by a program run by Lutheran Medical Center of New York.
Kokua Kalihi Valley treats area residents, charging only what they can pay and turning no one away. With the help of volunteers from the community, the dental residents provide care to people at health centers who otherwise would go without dental treatment.
Two residents who are providing free dental care at the Kokua Kalihi Valley clinic are Dr. Joseph Chu, from New York City, and Dr. Anita Sharma, from Calgary, Canada.
Dr. Samuel Ishimura serves as regional coordinator for the three-year-old Lutheran program in Hawai'i. He said the other two dental residents are on the Neighbor Islands, one on Kaua'i and one on Maui. "The need is so overwhelming," Ishimura said.
The recent graduates of dental schools say they like the chance to work with patients and help them ease their pain rather than serving their residencies in more traditional programs in hospitals or academic settings.
"It's been very rewarding. Every day, our patients are going home more comfortable," Sharma said. "They're able to sleep."
Chu estimates that 15 percent of their patients at Kokua Kalihi Valley have never seen a dentist before. "You see 20-year-olds with teeth missing," he said.
"This is a perfect place for me to learn more of my dental skills while helping the community," he said. Chu said a big part of the program is teaching people about taking care of their teeth between visits. Some wait to visit until teeth are so bad that they must be pulled.
Dr. Mark Greer, chief of the state's dental health division, said there's no clear statistic to indicate how many people go without dental care in Hawai'i. "It's difficult to quantify," he said.
Greer said Hawai'i has relatively high level of access to dental care in general, but that it's harder to find dentists willing to work with people with disabilities and those who have gone without care for some time.
Greer said The Queen's Medical Center runs a dental clinic that serves the disabled and those requiring hospital-level dental care. And private dentists help to fill some gaps through the volunteer work of Dental Samaritans.
Elvie Domingo, 29, moved from the Philippines three years ago and has found the Kalihi clinic a good place for her, her husband and their two sons. Although she had gone years without seeing a dentist, she's got her sons going regularly. Nine-year-old John, a fourth-grader at Fern Elementary, sums up going to the dentist as "OK." He admits he was "a little bit scared" at first but doesn't mind the visits now.
Sharma is reaching out in another way. Last year she started a non-profit organization, Dentists Without Borders, with the goal of providing free dental care to the less privileged around the world. The group already has sent a team of dentists, hygienists and students to Guatemala.
Once there, they provided care, training, education and the basics of toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss. Sharma said traveling overseas showed her the urgent need for dental care.
Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
