CU School of Dentistry and Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation establish new Oral Health Center
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| On hand to cut the ribbon on the new Delta Dental Foundation Frontier Center are, from the left: Phyllis Albritton, executive director of Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation; Jacci McKenna, outgoing chairman of the board of Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation; Bill Lake, DDS, chairman of the board of the Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation; and Denise Kassebaum, DDS, MS, interim dean of the University of Colorado School of Dentistry. |
The Delta Dental Foundation Frontier Center, made possible through a $1 million grant from the Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation, is located in the CU School of Dentistry’s Lazzara Center for Oral-Facial Health.
Officials said the new center is the result of a unique partnership between the CU School of Dentistry and Delta Dental’s foundation. Patients will benefit because dentists and medical doctors will work together to promote the best possible health care for patients.
“ There have been a number of recent studies that link overall health and well-being to oral health in patients such as links between oral health and blood sugar management in diabetics and a reduction in low birth weight outcomes in pregnant women,” said Phyllis Albritton, the foundation’s executive director. “We’ve partnered with the CU School of Dentistry to explore the overlap in medicine and dentistry and to ensure students are taught about the relationship between oral health and general health.”
The strategic initiatives of the Delta Dental Foundation Frontier Center will include educating students and practitioners about the oral manifestations of systemic disease, and the impact of oral disease on health. The initiatives will be set forth by an external advisory committee consisting of faculty from both the CU Schools of Dentistry and Medicine.
“ The educational programs that arise from this partnership with the Delta Dental Foundation will be structured to have an immediate impact with current students and will result in long-term improvements in communication and collaborations between dentists and physicians,” said Denise Kassebaum, DDS, MS, interim dean of dentistry. "Such interdisciplinary collaborations are consistent with the vision of the Fitzsimons campus – to support interprofessional collaborations in education, research and patient care – and will enhance the care of the patients we are privileged to treat."
The CU School of Dentistry officially opened its new Lazzara Center for Oral-Facial Health in September 2005 at the UCD Fitzsimons campus.
| The Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation, founded in 1997, promotes activities towards the improvement of oral health care in Colorado. The foundation mission is to sponsor programs that prevent oral disease and advance the science and practice of oral health care. The primary funding for the foundation is by Delta Dental of Colorado. The Foundation's activities are governed by a Board of Trustees whose members include dental and public health experts and community leaders throughout the state. Visit www.deltadentalco.com for more information. |
