More than 30 dental hygiene students from West Coast University-Orange County gained valuable knowledge and hands-on experience while volunteering at the 2018 Care Harbor health fair this October.
WCU dental hygiene dean Dr. Michelle Hurbutt said 32 of her students and four faculty members traveled to downtown Los Angeles on a recent Saturday to spend over eight hours providing needed dental care to the uninsured and underserved community.
“Our junior students provided oral hygiene instruction, fluoride treatments, oral cancer screenings, radiographs and assisted senior students as well as local dentists performing oral surgery,” Hurbutt said. “Our senior students provided direct patient care such as routine cleanings, and scaling and root planings with local anesthesia.”
Founded in 2010, Care Harbor provides no-cost medical, dental and vision appointments to people without access to the care they need. With the help of medical volunteers from a variety of specialties, Care Harbor has helped more than 23,000 people in the Los Angeles area while providing more than 126,000 medical, dental and vision services.
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