Home | About Us | Programs | Publications | Initiatives | News | Links
Calaveras County
Overview of Findings
There are only 13 dentists in rural Calaveras County and none accept Denti-Cal. There are 2 practices that accept Healthy Families patients. Because there are no dentists who accept Denti-Cal in Calaveras County, families must travel up to 3 to 4 hours to receive dental care in Atwater. There are also few dentists who will treat children younger than 4 years old, even if the child has private insurance. Young children are referred to providers in surrounding Tuolumne or Amador counties.
The Calaveras Children’s Dental Project is a school-based dental program that serves Head Start and Elementary School children. The staff visits classes in the fall and provides dental education and topical fluoride varnish treatments. Later in the school year, staff returns with portable equipment to perform oral evaluation assessments, cleanings, sealants, and the second fluoride treatment. Funding for follow-up treatments for pre-school children is available through First 5 and Head Start. However, there is no funding for treatment available for children who are 5 years and older. The parents of these children are provided with a list of providers who accept young patients.
One of the key informants interviewed stated that patient compliance was a challenge of their program. The key informant expressed that families don’t understand the importance of taking care of baby teeth. There are also missed appointments and failure to finish procedures that are completed in multiple appointments.
Data
The following links lead to visual representations of the data collected in the surveys for this county. Maps in the 'slideshow' have accompanying text that helps explain what is visually taking place as well as comparing the results of this county's maps to the results for the rest of the region. The PDF maps have no explanation text and are only the visual image.