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Dental Center at Smithfield clinic in Wis Chippewa Falls.
Karen Eslinger, a health expert, is sorting out the room.
This is routine.
Cover the head pillow of the chair with plastic, open instrument, wipe tray.
But she started to be creative.
"My next patient is very small and weak, so I like to go for an oral surgery and buy a heated blanket.
I wrapped her up. I think this will give her peace of mind . "
The patient is 16-year-old Kathy Falk.
She suffers from Leite syndrome, a genetic disease that has a range of symptoms that look like cerebral palsy, Parkinson's disease, anxiety, and autism.
She is in a wheelchair and can't speak, it will be difficult to open her mouth for a long time.
Kathy's parents carried her from her wheelchair to her chair.
Eslinger wrapped her in a warm blanket and dressed her in Tiger clothes --
Striped sunglasses block the glare.
She tells the whole cleaning process and tells Kathy everything she is going to do with encouraging words.
"It's hard for her to get her toothbrush here, you know, we can only ask so much;
"No matter what she tolerates," said esinger, leaning over Kathy with an electric toothbrush.
"You are doing what you can.
"It's a great discovery for people with serious disabilities like Kathy, estinger and this clinic.
They welcome patients with various physical and behavioral disabilities.
Persons with disabilities are usually insured through Medicare, the federal health care program for the poor and the disabled.
This program does not always pay for dental care, which is often less than the cost when it is paid.
This means that it is difficult to find a dentist who is willing and able to do the job.
Dentists and health workers at the Smithfield clinic carry Medicaid and people who do not have any insurance.
They specialize in caring for disabled people who need extra help in order to complete the inspection and cleaning.
Some people with autism may be afraid of lights, sounds, or touch.
Some people with physical disabilities may not be able to maintain the position of the head.
"I have a patient coming in and we read some books before she sits in a chair and then she will calm down and stop crying and we can do more cleaning work.
The patient is in his 30 s.
The Down syndrome patient was very scared and Eslinger began cleaning up his teeth in the lobby.
Each appointment was closer to the treatment room until she finally persuaded him to sit in the chair.
Beth Rowan, another health worker at the clinic who takes care of patients with special needs, said the work was also practical.
She's in the lobby of Eslinger, cleaning up the teeth of 31-year-old Lindsay Creek. year-
Elderly women with cerebral palsy and epilepsy.
Lindsay is a blind man in a wheelchair.
Her mother said she was a toddler.
Rowan leaned over and looked at Lindsay, and while her mother was standing on her head, she was cleaning her teeth with dental floss and singing to her throughout the cleaning process.
"It's hard for your body;
They are strong, "said Rowan.
"They are pulling, their heads are strong, their lips are strong, and their tongue is strong.
"For invasive procedures such as filling or root canal, dentists at the Smithfield clinic go through the Street to St.
Joseph Hospital, where patients can be treated in the operating room under complete anesthesia.
"There is a certain proportion of the population that absolutely needs anesthesia to ensure the safety of their dental care," said John Morgan, a professor in the special care unit of the School of Dental Medicine at the University of taffz.
Taftz runs a series of clinics throughout Massachusetts to serve the disabled.
Morgan is the lead author of 2012 studies published in the Journal of the American Dental Association, which shows that people with disabilities have worse oral health than the general population.
"Access to dental care is part of the problem, but there are also problems that occur in the family;
"What can we do to help improve the maintenance of oral health in the home environment," Morgan said . ".
Kathy's mother, Arla Falk, said they had looked for several dentists before they found the clinic at Chippewa Falls.
45 minutes from their home, they are four times a year.
"Having a dentist who is willing to receive medical assistance is a challenge," she said . ".
"We have been with her several times.
One of them didn't even want to take her, nor did they want her to stay as a patient.
"Three out of the Smithfield clinic are dedicated to the disabled, serving more than 1,700 disabled persons per year.
"We do have patients making appointments for cleaning or initial appointments three or four hours away," said health worker Rowan . ".
"Then they get one or two hours of care and they have to drive back because there's nothing around them.
"Two years ago, the only clinic in Madison, the capital of Wisconsin, that provided dental care under anesthesia was closed because the hospital Meriter UnityPoint Health, the company said, the annual loss of more than $600,000 in the provision of dental care.
Under a fee-sharing agreement with two other hospitals in the city, the company reopened this month.
When the clinic was closed, Meriter officials sent the patient to the University of Minnesota four hours away.
Jeffrey Karp, a professor at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry who takes care of children with disabilities, said he was not surprised.
"We did receive patients who came to us from Wisconsin;
"Also from parts of Dakota and Iowa," Karp said . ".
"There are not many resources, and it is clear that you need to go further to find them.
"Karp has a grant to identify hospitals, clinics and dentists that care for disabled people across the country.
The goal is to create a network of providers dedicated to providing dental care to persons with disabilities, despite the high cost.
Greg niitz, executive director of cyberdentistry clinic at Smithfield clinic, they said that they received most of the expenses reimbursed by Medicaid through a special clause, the clause allows clinics that only care for the poor to receive greater reimbursement than regular dentists. But St.
Two other hospitals in Joseph's Hospital and Smithfield did not benefit from this.
"Because we only have poor patients and patients receiving public assistance, it is a sacrifice for these hospitals," Nycz said . ".
He said he was angry-
Profitable hospitals do not usually make the same commitment.
Back at the clinic at Chippewa Falls, Kathy Falk has had enough.
She became agitated and giggled a little.
Eslinger is over.
"We have done the cleaning work," said Eslinger . ".
"Ah, we have Toothpaste everywhere, don't we?
In the hall, Rowan praised Lindsay Click's mother, Sandra.
"You did a very good job of taking care of her teeth," she said . ".
"She was lucky to have them as long as she had them.