School of Dentistry participates in health fair, back-to-school events

UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry faculty and students provided care and/or assistance to 250 individuals across two simultaneous community outreach events on July 20, taking part in the Global Health Refugee and Immigrant Health Fair at Southwest Multi-Service Center and the HOPE Clinic Back-To-School Bonanza.

“These efforts underscore the School of Dentistry’s dedication to improving oral health and providing care to the community,” said Raha Naderi, RDH, MEd, who serves as the director for community outreach. “We are committed to community health and wellness and providing accessible care to underserved populations.”

At the Global Health Refugee and Immigrant Health Fair, dental hygiene students Shadi Fahham and Julie Nguyen, along with faculty members Naderi, Hamid Nurrohman, DDS, PhD; Gargi Mukherji, DDS, provided free dental screenings, oral health education, nutritional counseling, and fluoride varnish applications to attendees. The School of Dentistry collaborated with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston to participate in the event.

Simultaneously, the School of Dentistry and UT Dentists partnered with HOPE Clinic for its Back-To-School Bonanza, delivering essential services such as dental screenings, oral hygiene instructions, fluoride varnish applications, and nutritional counseling. Volunteers included dental students Claire Chen and Suchi Chowdhary; dental hygiene students Victoria Boreman, Stephanie Seymour, Cathy Kadharmestan, Aline Almazan, Ngan (Kyle) Dinh, and Evelyn Garcia; Elham Abbassi, DDS; Long Tran, PharmD, DDS; and Jennifer Blanton, DDS, with UT Dentists.