Missouri Donated Dental Services Volunteer Dental Office Goes Above and Beyond Showing concern for patient’s dental health, overall wellbeing
T
hrough Dental Lifeline Network– Missouri’s Donated Dental Services (DDS) program, people in our com-
munities who are elderly, disabled or medi- cally compromised receive comprehensive dentistry that they otherwise would not be able to afford. The volunteer dentists and their staff make an incredible difference to patients both in the office and outside—like in the case of Dora and the office of Dr. Ron Massie in Lake Ozark.
Dora is a retired woman living in Eldon, Mo., who received generous care from Dr. Massie and his staff. She says her mouth was really healthy until eight years ago when her house burned down, and Dora lost everything. Her oral health started declining due to the stress of her situation; she began to lose teeth and
faced more and more dental pain. With no fi- nancial resources to address her dental issues, she felt like she had nowhere to go for help.
Fortunately, Dora was referred to Dental Lifeline Network by the Eldon Food Pantry and was matched with Dr. Massie, a volunteer dentist with the DDS program for the past 13 years. Dr. Massie was able to fit a partial up- per and partial lower denture, as well as place a number of crowns donated by Edmonds Dental Prosthetics in Springfield.
However, the kindness and generosity of Dr. Massie’s office did not stop there. When finishing up treatment, Eldon—Dora’s hometown—was hit by a tornado. Concerned for Dora’s safety, the office tried to call her and her family members but were not able
Dr. Ron Massie and Brittany Lowary, CDA, EFDA, pictured with Dora, whom they’ve provided care to through Dental Lifeline– Missouri Donated Dental Services.
to reach any of them. They needed to know Dora was okay.
“We have a lot of great volunteer dentists and it never ceases to amaze me how some of them get attached to [the wellbeing of] our patients,” said Mary Jo Henke, Missouri DDS coordinator.
One of Dr. Massie’s staff members lives in Eldon, so she tried to get to Dora’s house, however the streets were blocked with downed trees. They were worried she had suffered the same catastrophic loss again. Finally, the staff member arrived and was able to reach Dora. She expressed her gratitude for the staff going above and beyond.
“That’s the kind of staff [Dr. Massie] has! Wow, just wow! I’m forever thankful,” said Dora.
Although part of her house was damaged by a fallen tree, Dora and her neighbors were safe. With her completed treatment and the love and care from Dr. Massie’s staff, Dora could smile again.
32 focus | JUL/AUG 2019 | ISSUE 4
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