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What is the Community Oral Health Representative Program?
Imagine a young girl fighting a terrible tooth ache because she has not been able to see a dentist for months. Imagine that same child standing in line outside a clinic at 4 a.m. until its doors open five hours later. She finally gets to the front of the line only to be turned away because the clinic is closing or because she does not have the right paperwork or the proper dental insurance. The girl is told to come back the next day and try again. Unfortunately, this is a painful reality in parts of Arizona. Now, there is a golden opportunity to write a new chapter by bringing quality dental care into Arizona's hard-to-reach areas. The American Dental Association and Arizona Dental Association have developed the Community Oral Health Representative (COHR) program. This innovative program will bring dental care to children, teens, seniors and families across the state. It provides employment opportunities by training and employing residents of their own community. Since the coordinators are part of the community, there is a deeper level of trust and cultural understanding between coordinator and patient. The unique multi-level program ensures that the COHR can fit into communities exactly where they are needed. Some COHR's will be trained in only basic functions of prevention and education while others will be trained to the highest level of treatment and planning that includes x-rays and temporization. The positions will work independently to provide immediate care and will work as part of a dental team under a dentist's general supervision. This allows the dentist to spend time on the most urgent cases and to treat more patients in less time. Contact: |
