Dental Help for Kids

Dental care for underserved communities was Dr. Bill Leicht’s passion for his thirty-year career, most of which was spent at a community health center in New York. After retiring as the center’s Dental Director, he moved to Seattle to start his next chapter which, lucky for us, includes commitment to his professional passion. The SKCDS Access to Care Committee and SKCDF had partnered on and approved a grant to create a mobile dentistry program that would focus on applying sealants to first molars, to stop any early signs of decay and provide the children treated with a positive dental foundation moving forward. Programs such as these used to be common in school districts in King County, but with budget cuts and funds shifting to other needs, these programs have disappeared from the education system. To add to potentially brewing problems, many parents have put off dental care during the global pandemic. Therefore, the Sealant Program steps in to support our public schools and provide necessary care to children in need.

For the initial launch of this program, the Highline School District was approached to gauge interest in hosting Dr. Leicht and volunteer dentists to carry out the procedures. Through a lot of red tape, COVID-related bumps in the road, and back and forth on equipment needed to make this experience as optimal as possible, the program formally launched at Midway Elementary with a focus on the second-grade class! The first day of treatment took place on May 20, 2022 and Dr. Sonia Takasaki (with Dr. Leicht assisting) screened seven children, provided fluoride varnish on five, and placed a total of fifteen sealants. All seven children screened that day had untreated caries, although on the consent forms that had been sent out to parents prior to the treatment day, only four of the children had indicated not having a dental home. Regardless of this, all children seen were sent home with information on nearby dental resources (based on the school zip code).

The final treatment day for this school year took place on June 8, 2022 with Dr. Chris Shyue performing treatments in the morning and Dr. Randy Ogata taking over in the afternoon. Between the two of them, they saw six children, applied fluoride varnish to five, and placed a total of twelve sealants. Dr. Leicht has already begun discussions with some of the principals at other elementary schools in the Highline School District who are excited to welcome this program to their own campuses during the next school year. The plan is also to return to Midway to check on the placed sealants of the now-third graders and provide treatments to the new second grade class! If you are interested in taking part in making this program possible, please reach out to Dr. Bill Leicht at accessmanager@skcds.com to let him know of your availability during the coming school year. With planning taking place so early, he will be able to use the dates you provide him to work with the schools to find the best dates possible for all involved.