(Feb. 15, 2018) Chesapeake Health Care will be able to extend oral health care services to those who have limited or no access to dental care in Somerset, Worcester and Wicomico counties thanks in part to a grant from the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore.

The money will be used to provide uninsured and underinsured patients with dental exams, X-rays and tooth extractions if needed, all without cost to the patients.

One of the goals of providing dental care to these patients is to reduce the number of urgent dental treatments resulting from the lack of dental care – catching problems earlier to reduce complications later.

“We are grateful to the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore for this grant to assist us in providing dental care to adults in our community,” said Susanne Gray, CEO/COO of Chesapeake Health Care. “This grant will mean that many more people in our community will receive access to the critical dental care that they need, who would otherwise not be able to afford it.”

Peninsula Regional Medical Center, through its mobile Wagner Wellness Van, sees many patients who have oral health issues, but they do not have the resources to treat those patients with the dental care they desperately need. With this grant, Peninsula Regional Medical Center will now be able to refer those patients to Chesapeake Health Care’s Dental Department, where they can be treated.

This grant also provides an opportunity for Chesapeake Health Care to continue its successful partnership with H.O.P.E. (Help and Outreach Point of Entry, Inc.) ministries in Salisbury, to refer homeless patients in need of oral healthcare services.

In providing essential dental care to those in need in the community, Chesapeake Health Care is striving to improve the general health of residents of the Eastern Shore, regardless of financial circumstances.

Founded in 1994, Chesapeake Health Care is a multidisciplinary healthcare practice serving Somerset, Wicomico and Worcester counties. Approximately 100 providers are on staff to provide healthcare to the region’s patients in the following disciplines: Adult and Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Urogynecology, Mental Health, Dental and Pharmacy.

Health care is extended to individuals who are uninsured, underinsured and insured. A Sliding Fee Scale program is available to assist eligible patients with healthcare payments. For more information about Chesapeake Health Care, visit www.ChesapeakeHC.org.