Behind Dr. Anna Novais’ desk, a bulletin board holds dozens of handmade thank-you cards from patients of all ages. These cards come from people who arrived in pain and left able to smile again.
Next to the board is a color-coded chart showing staffing assignments across the 12 dental clinics she helps oversee. Each color represents a hygienist, dentist, or assistant working to bring oral health care to thousands of Cincinnati residents. The clinics include six school-based dental centers and six Community Health dental centers.
Novais, assistant dental director at the Cincinnati Health Department, sees this wall daily as a reminder of the program’s impact. This program has become a national model for school-based dental care.
“We often see teachers walk students into our dental centers, saying, ‘This child has been crying from pain, unable to eat or focus in class,’” Novais says. “Helping them right at school changes everything.”
Cincinnati’s network of 12 dental centers is the result of decades of partnership with the Delta Dental Foundation and local organizations. Six of these centers are located inside public schools. They offer year-round, full dental care not only to students but also to their families and the community.
Services include exams, sealants, cleanings, fluoride treatments, fillings, root canals, extractions, and dental prosthetics such as dentures and crowns. Students also receive urgent dental care for injuries like sports trauma or untreated abscesses.
“At the 11 sites we have operated so far, we see about 24,000 patients annually, with nearly 52,000 visits,” Novais reports. “With our newest clinic at Roberts Academy, we will add about 2,200 more patients. Hundreds of students will also be bused in for their first comprehensive dental care.”
Breaking Down Barriers
The initiative began out of necessity. School nurses were overwhelmed by students suffering tooth pain and infections. Their options were limited to pain relievers or antibiotics.
Oral health is essential to overall well-being. Yet tooth decay remains one of the most common chronic childhood diseases in the U.S., even more than asthma or diabetes.
The Cincinnati Health Department responded with an ambitious plan: build dental clinics inside schools. With backing from the Cincinnati Public School District, the Delta Dental Foundation, and key local partners—including the Community Learning Center Institute, the Cincinnati Dental Society, and Interact for Health—the plan took shape.
The Delta Dental Center at Oyler, opened in fall 2013, became the first school-based dental center in the nation.
“We provide full dental services,” Novais explains. “In some schools, the dental center is inside the building. In others, it’s in a nearby building connected to the school. We also have a portable prevention team that visits schools without a clinic. Students with parental consent receive exams and preventive care. Those who need further treatment are bused to our main clinics.”
This program removes obstacles for families who often lack transportation or cannot take time off work. It also tackles the shortage of providers accepting Medicaid.
“Dental care is costly and access is limited,” Novais says. “Without this program, many children would go without care.”
Beyond treatment, the school-based clinics offer continuity of care.
“We see students year after year,” Novais says. “Even if treatment can’t be completed in one visit, students return to continue care. This continuity helps us reduce untreated tooth decay, which affects nearly 60% of Cincinnati Public Schools students.”