OHA Newsletter

Oral Health America 's Board of Directors is very pleased to announce the appointment of Beth Truett as President and Chief Executive Officer of the national advocacy organization. Ms. Truett comes to the position with significant corporate and non-profit leadership experience, including over twenty years as a business executive in marketing and sales, and most recently, as the Executive Director of Chicago Lights, a community services organization that annually serves thousands of Chicagoans who face the challenges of aging, poverty, access to education and healthcare.

“We welcome Ms. Truett at an exciting time for oral health and a time of great promise for Oral Health America,” said Kathy Zwieg, CDA, RDA, Chairman, Oral Health America. “Our hopes for the organization are well matched in her considerable leadership abilities, professional experience, and commitment to the issues.”

At Chicago Lights, Ms. Truett served as the inaugural Executive Director to create the organization, increase revenue, and develop collaborative programs. Her previous successes include restructuring and expanding client solutions as a Vice President and Senior Vice President for two of the nation's largest providers of global event and travel management, marketing communications, and enterprise consulting to corporations in the pharmaceutical, financial services, and technology sectors. She also has developed marketing campaigns for Kraft Foods.

Ms. Truett has a BS in Food & Nutrition from Valparaiso University, a Masters degree in Divinity from McCormick Seminary in Chicago, and holds a Certificate in Fundraising Management from Indiana University School of Philanthropy. She is a member of the Association of Funding Professionals (AFP), serves as an AFP Mentor, is a member of the Corporate Responsibility Group, and one of 100 women inducted in 1997 into Leadership America, an international organization recognizing women for career and volunteer leadership. She is a member of the Board of Directors for Voices for Illinois Children, and has served in multiple volunteer capacities for organizations in Chicago and her home town of Oak Park, IL.

The National Spit Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP) announced the winner of its annual slogan contest on August 18, and encouraged young baseball players to talk to their coaches and parents about tobacco addiction and the health risks of using tobacco products, including spit and smokeless tobacco. This year's slogan contest winner is Joe Reck, a nine-year-old Little League Baseball player with the Walnut Creek Little League from Windsor Heights, IA, whose submission, “Take tobacco out of your lineup!” sends a clear message that tobacco has no place in the ballpark. Read more

Pictured left: Michael Reck, Joe Reck and Oral Health America's Joseph Donohue at the Oral Health America booth at the Little League Baseball World Series.

The Patterson Foundation has awarded a grant of $75,000 to Oral Health America in support of its expanding Smiles Across America program, which provides technical assistance and resources to improve the oral health and well-being of uninsured children and families who do not have routine dental care. The program supports services to over 90,000 children annually and helps communities respond to the critical need for oral disease prevention and oral health promotion.

George Rhodes, Oral Health America Board Member and recently retired Vice President of Corporate Communications and Professional Relations at DENTSPLY, said, “We deeply appreciate this grant, which allows us to continue the important work of expanding needed oral health care and education. School oral health programs are a critical point of contact for children without regular access to a dental care provider.” Read more

Oral Health America is proud to announce a $45,000 donation from 3M ESPE in support of Smiles Across America. This financial contribution follows significant product donations from 3M ESPE Dental Products of over 53,000 applications of Clinpro™ Brand Dental Sealant during the 2007-08 school year, and 30,000 applications of Vanish™ 5% Sodium Fluoride White Varnish.

“3M ESPE strongly supports Oral Health America's Smiles Across America program, which is helping communities build infrastructure for school oral health services,” said Steve Bonfig, Global Communications Manager, 3M ESPE. “We have had a longstanding partnership with Oral Health America , and are committed to helping them help care providers who are preventing oral disease and educating children about oral health's importance to overall health.” Read more

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that 16 states will receive a total of $4.6 million over the next year and approximately $22 million over the next five years to strengthen their oral health programs and improve the oral health of their residents. Oral Health America is beginning the fifth year of a five-year cooperative agreement with the CDC, and provides technical and resource development assistance to the grantee states.

The states receiving these awards are Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. More information is available here.

On July 25, The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU) and the Alliance for Health Reform cosponsored a Capitol Hill briefing, “Dental Health: Time to Address the Health Care System's Neglected Stepchild?” With health reform discussions ongoing, the briefing examined oral health in the broader conversation of improving quality and expanding access. Three new reports released at the event are available online.
August 19, Washington Post article, Watch Your Mouth: Gums and Teeth Give Clues About What's Going On Inside Your Body
W.K. Kellogg Foundation joins funding partners in evaluating the Dental Health Aid Therapist Program in rural Alaska
Marketing healthy habits: Warning: Habits May be Good for You, The New York Times, July 13, 2008
Columbia University researchers find that periodontal disease can independently predict new onset diabetes
Oral Health Issue Brief, Community Efforts to Expand Dental Services for Low Income People, from Health System Change
A July 4 article in Science Daily looked at a recent study of North Carolina's successful "Into the Mouths of Babes" (IMB) program, which has trained physicians in more than 400 pediatric primary care offices to screen for tooth decay and refer children who need care to dentists. The study was presented at the International Association of Dental Research meeting in Toronto earlier this year.

Your contribution to OHA is matched dollar-for-dollar by DENTSPLY International. Thank you for supporting our efforts to bring needed resources and services to families without routine oral health care. Please consider a donation today.

Founded in 1955, Oral Health America is the nation’s premier, independent advocacy organization dedicated to improving oral health for all Americans. For more information, please send email correspondence to info@oralhealthamerica.org.