Dental Students Help Illinois Veterans in Need

Students from Midwestern University's College of Dental Medicine-Illinois (CDMI) recently participated in the first DuPage County Veterans Stand Down. The event, with support from various local, state, and national veterans' organizations, provided a wide range of services to underserved veterans in Illinois.

At the two-day event, veterans received medical and dental services, along with information about VA programs, Social Security, and employment opportunities. The DuPage County Health Department and Midwestern University students representing the Veterans Support Group (VSG) student organization coordinated the dental services for the event.

More than 13 Midwestern student volunteers and their faculty mentors volunteered to work at the screening and patient education location at the fairground as well as providing support for clinical care at the DuPage County Health Department's Dental Clinic. During the Stand Down, fourth-year dental students, under the guidance of CDMI faculty, were able to provide care to 30 patients including dental exams, radiographs, fillings, extractions, and cancer screenings.

The DuPage County event was the third Chicago-area Stand Down this year, but the first in the state to provide dental care for veterans in need. Veterans, depending on their level of disability, are entitled to certain levels of medical care, but are not entitled to routine dental care except in very limited situations.