Community Outreach Initiatives
The Mike Petryk School of Dentistry has a long history of community outreach initiatives. Through a collaborative effort with our students, employees, community partners, and sponsors, we provide essential oral health care to underserved communities beyond our campus. These initiatives provide invaluable experiential learning for our students, while ensuring our programs are directly informed by the real-world needs of the communities we serve.
I was so surprised and happy to know that there is support and help like this. I didn’t feel judged or looked down on. I began to get emotional because of my son's teeth, and the students were so kind to me, I’m very appreciative for this experience.
Patient
Thank you so much! It has been many years since my kids didn’t fight at the dentist. I appreciate the kindness and patience with them. It is amazing to leave with happy children after dental work.
Patient
By the numbers
Building on years of successful outreach, we are dedicated to strengthening our partnerships to further our community outreach.
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4,428
patients in the
2024/2025 academic year -
6,664
patients in the
2023/2024 academic year -
4,795
patients in the
2022/2023 academic year
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Current initiatives
Our approach to outreach is collaborative, hands-on projects with our community partners to provide students, staff, and faculty with a deeper understanding of real-world needs. Below are some of our current projects.
Satellite Clinics
Fourth-year students complete a two-week rotation at one of our three satellite clinics, an experience designed to support their development and build essential patient management skills. Since 1978, our partnership with the ß÷ßäÉçÇø government has allowed us to operate clinics in McLennan, La Crete, and High Level, bringing high-quality oral health care directly to northern communities.
Since 1993, Shine has been a student-run clinic providing free oral health care on Saturdays to vulnerable populations, located in Downtown Edmonton. The eight-chair clinic meets patient needs in a compassionate, non-judgmental and safe environment; it also offers students hands-on experience in performing procedures and running a dental practice, while exposing them to a patient base they might not otherwise serve.
In collaboration with the Métis Nation of ß÷ßäÉçÇø, A4A is a student-led initiative that has provided free oral health services since 2020. Students learn about Métis culture while providing checkups, dentures and emergency services to people who may have avoided the dentist due to cost, distance or fear. This partnership has not only created a safe and welcoming health-care environment but has also provided a valuable cultural exchange for our students.
School Visit Program
Each year, ß÷ßäÉçÇø Health Services identifies five or six schools in Edmonton where children have the greatest oral-health needs and buses them to the Oral Health Clinic for free oral health care. The entire process is managed through a system of parental consent, beginning with education and screenings at the schools and culminating in comprehensive exams and treatment.
Supporters
