The Children's Dental Center--a community resource to meet a community need

Growing numbers of children of working poor families in California have limited access to dental care. This article presents a unique solution to this problem: the Children's Dental Center. The center, a nonprofit corporation, emphasizes quality multidisciplinary care, aggressive preventive dental practices, and education programs for parent and child. Through behavioral change, coupled with dental care of urgent problems, the family's immediate needs are addressed while creating a future of diminished dental need and greater self-esteem.