White Papers

Catalyst Institute is renamed DentaQuest Institute

As of April 1, 2009, the Catalyst Institute is renamed the DentaQuest Institute. This name links the Institute with the DentaQuest national oral health enterprise whose collective mission is to improve oral health. We do this is in a number of ways: through administration of quality dental benefit programs (DentaQuest), philanthropy (DentaQuest Foundation) that emphasizes prevention and supports public awareness for optimal oral health, and our evidence-based research that has the potential to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of care delivery systems. Together, we are dedicated to better oral health for all

Improving Efficiency and Effectiveness

Growing the Safety Net Solutions Advisory Team

Current demand for Safety Net Solutions involvement proves that individualized systems change works. With the rapid growth in requests for Safety Net Solutions technical assistance services from clinics as well as public and private funders from all parts of the United States, Safety Net Solutions starts 2009 with a focused expansion of its expert advisory team.

"The potential impact that the national expansion of this program can have on the preservation, growth and viability of our nation's safety net dental practices is tremendous," said Dr. Doherty. "By increasing the number of professionals that are contributing and potentially using the Safety Net Solutions technical assistance model, and by increasing the geographic scope of our work, Safety Net Solutions will have the ability to contribute to improvements in the delivery of oral health care on a national level."

On January 9 and 10, 2009, Safety Net Solutions convened a panel of leaders in community health dentistry from across the U.S. at the DentaQuest Institute offices in Westborough, Massachusetts. Dr. Mark Doherty, Director of the Safety Net Solutions Program, led a detailed review of the Safety Net Solutions model for practice management and technical assistance. Repeatedly, leadership, staffing and institutional memory were highlighted as critical.

Attending the session were:

Jay Anderson, Chief Dental Officer, HRSA
Janet Bozzone, DMD, Dental Director, Open Door Family Medical Centers (Ossing, NY)
Alexandra Chan, DDS, Dental Director, Hill Health Center (New Haven, CT)
Steve Geiermann, DDS, ADA Senior Manager, Access, Community Oral Health Infrastructure and Capacity (Chicago, IL)
Lawrence Hill, DDS, MPH, Cincinnati Department of Health, and President, American Association of Community Dental Programs (Cincinnati, OH)
Skip Homicz, DDS, president-elect of the NH Dental Society (New Castle, NH)
Marty Lieberman, DDS, Neighborcare Health (Seattle, WA)
Elias Koutros, DDS, Spartan Dental (Cranston, RI)
Barbara Kubilus, Chief Special Programs Officer, Borinquen Health Center (Miami, FL)
John McFarland, DDS, President, National Network for Oral Health Access, Dental Director, Salud Family Health Center (Fort Lupton, CO)
James Patsis, DDS, MBA (York, PA)
Kathy Phipps, DrPH, RDH, Consultant (Morro Bay, CA)
Dale Reumping, DDS, MSD (Spokane, WA)
David Rosenstein, DMD, MPH, Professor Emeritus, Oregon Health and Science University (Portland, OR)
John Rosetti, Chief Dental Officer, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, former Chief Dental Officer, Health Resources and Services Administration (Columbia, MD)
Frank Schiano, DMD, Dental Director, Whittier Street Health Center (Roxbury, MA)
Michelle Sohiel, DMD, Dental Director, Borinquen Health Center (Miami, FL)
Jim Sutherland, DMD, HRSA Regional Dental Consultant (Denver, CO)

Joining the review was SNS' newest (fifth) staff member, Danielle Goldsmith.

DentaQuest Institute Partners with Florida Foundation to Expand Access to Oral Health Services

The DentaQuest Institute and Health Foundation of South Florida are partnering on a program designed to increase access to oral health services for underserved populations in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. A grant was awarded to the DentaQuest Institute’s Safety Net Solutions™ program as part of Health Foundation’s commitment to allocate $7 million for a 5-year major oral health initiative.

DentaQuest Institute’s Safety Net Solutions Advises California HealthCare Foundation

Dr. Mark Doherty and Dori Bingham of the DentaQuest Institute's Safety Net Solutions Program recently partnered with Mary Kate Scott and the California HealthCare Foundation to produce a comprehensive report on best practices in community health dental programs entitled, "The Good Practice: Treating Underserved Dental Patients While Staying Afloat. To view this report, click here http://www.chcf.org/topics/medi-cal/index.cfm?itemID=133706

The goal of this oral health report, which was written after conducting in-depth interviews with oral health leaders throughout the nation, is to assist oral health professionals in determining how to better serve publicly insured and uninsured in California and nationwide. Low reimbursement rates for Medicaid dental services often become an obstacle to improving the oral health of low-income patients. Although the environment is challenging, some dental clinics have found methods to not only cope with Medicaid limitations, but even to increase their payment revenues and expand their capacity to treat low-income patients. These clinics have developed best practices that allow them to streamline operations and boost productivity.

"While the environments of care and reimbursement rates for safety net dental programs may vary from state to state, clinics across the country are facing many of the same obstacles when it comes to providing oral health to underserved populations," said Mark Doherty, Director of Safety Net Solutions and co-author of the California Health Care Foundation report. "This report provides a series of enhancements for safety net practices that will allow then to overcome many of these common obstacles, minimizing their negative impact on safety net dental practices."

This report, conceptualized and funded by the California Health Care Foundation as part of their work in oral health, outlines the necessary techniques and tools to help safety net dental practices become efficient and effective. These tools include: the fundamentals of creating a sound strategic plan: paying special attention to the reimbursement process and payer mix; achieving a smooth patient flow; designing an optimal staffing pattern; the importance of effective business systems; and implementing new technologies and clinical programs.