KINGSPORT, Tenn. — The Kingsport community has a new dental clinic, giving patients a new resource while also giving fourth-year dental students a chance to get hands-on experience inside a clinic setting.
The University of Tennessee Health Science Center said community leaders, partners and supporters gathered on Wednesday to celebrate the completion of the new Kingsport Dental Clinic of the Appalachian Highlands. It will be operated by the health science center's College of Dentistry, aiming to improve oral health in the region.
A release from the center said the college would place fourth-year dental students on rotation at the center, under the supervision of faculty.
The new clinic is part of the Health Smiles Initiative, a statewide effort to improve dental health. The health science center said the College of Dentistry is expected to receive around $53 million of funding over several years to expand dental class sizes and grow the state's dental workforce, helping open more clinics like the one in Kingsport.
In September, it will start sending students to train at the new facility and every two weeks, four students will be sent to get hands-on training and help treat patients in the area. They hope to later implement programs allowing third-year and fourth-year students to study full-time in Kingsport.
"We know our families, friends, and neighbors need access to quality care and services, and this dental clinic will deliver on both," said Paula Bulcai in a release, the executive director of the Eastman Foundation.
