June 8, 2009 | British Columbia

Students in CDI’s Intra-Oral Dental Assistant program volunteered their time and skills to provide free urgent dental care to low-income adults, seniors and students without dental insurance as part of the British Columbia Dental Association’s fifth annual Community Dental Day.

Since it was established in 2003, Community Dental Day has provided more than $1.8 million worth of free dental care to over 5000 people throughout BC.

Under the guidance of three CDI instructors, the 24 students assisted three local dentists with everything from greeting patients and gathering dental histories to assisting with dental procedures and clean up.

“This is a win-win situation,” said one of the volunteers. “Patients get free dental care, the students get some great experience and the dentists and the college get a chance to give back to the community.”

The BCDA and several post-secondary institutions throughout the province host these events annually in conjunction with Oral Health Month and National Volunteer Week. This was the third Community Dental Day that CDI participated in and the instructors were grateful to be able to participate.