The Houston Health Department’s (HHD) Project Saving Smiles (PSS) program has always been about more than just routine teeth cleanings. For 17 years PSS staff have committed to caring for the overall oral health in elementary students in and around the Houston area, ensuring those children were given the care and education needed to foster life-long healthy behavior. This perseverance has led to a significant milestone: PSS has now served over 100,000 students since its inception.  

Project Saving Smiles targets elementary schools in the Houston area, which have 50% or more students enrolled in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program. Participating schools provide bus transportation for their students to and from the PSS location. This vital project has given students confidence, renewed health, and a deeper understanding of oral care and its importance. 

“For all of us in public health, we are committed to serving the community that doesn’t have a voice, and with PSS we are able to physically see the impact of what we’re doing,” said HHD Deputy Assistant Director Valerie Bergeron. “We can visit with the children, we do oral health education with them, we see their eagerness to learn, we battle cavities and other issues they’d be living with without care, and we give them the resources to get them fixed. It's a heart-warming experience to watch the process.”  

Project Saving Smiles was founded in 2008 by HHD Bureau Chief Dr. Teresita Ladrillo, whose research revealed that certain communities saw more cavities in children than others. Some communities had as many as 60% – 70% of children with cavities. Those startling numbers drove Ladrillo to establish a program that provides increased access to dental care for children in need. Its legacy has affirmed that public health is a force for good that can create tangible and everlasting impact in communities. 

“One of our goals in the future is to do follow-up care and screenings of children we saw in kindergarten as they go through schooling,” said Bergeron. “We want to make sure that they are truly taking care of their teeth after they leave. We also want to start reaching out to parents, so they also learn what it means to take care of their children’s teeth as well as their own. 

According to the 2000 Surgeon General’s Report, more than 51 million school hours are lost each year due to dental-related illness. Additionally, children who experience pain from tooth problems are likely to be distracted and unable to concentrate on their studies. Using an evidence-based dental public health approach, Project Saving Smiles provides dental screenings, dental sealants, fluoride varnish, and oral health education free of charge to second graders attending schools with ≥50% free and reduced lunch program rates. Dental sealants are applied to the deep grooves of back teeth to prevent cavities. Sealants, at times, may need to be reapplied to remain protective to the teeth. Fluoride varnish is a protective coating painted over tooth surfaces to help prevent new cavities and to stop early cavities. 

“The science shows that if students can be cavity free between the ages of 3 and 7 and if we put sealants on their molars, then they have a good chance of not developing cavities for the rest of their lives, particularly during their teens years which is when they normally develop bad habits with eating,” said Bergeron. 

What makes the program so special and sustainable, Bergeron says, is the dedicated staff that is built to serve day in and day out. 

“In just one day our PSS staff is seeing over 200 patients within 5 hours,” said Bergeron. “It's mentally and physically exhausting, so the fact that the staff shows up every time with full energy and devotion is remarkable and they should get a pat on the back for it.” 

Congratulations to Project Saving Smiles on this incredible milestone!