Rockford dentists providing invaluable in-school care to RPS students

For the past 11 years, local dentist Dr. Cyrus Oates and a team of dentists and assistants have been giving Rockford Public School students something to smile about.

For over a decade, Oates along with Dr. Jason Grinter, has been making routine visits to RPS schools to provide dental exams to students and identifying problems that might lead to health issues and school absences.

Eligible students can have their teeth cleaned twice a year. Students found to be in need of dental care beyond a routine cleaning such as filling cavities or treating an abscess tooth can take a RPS school bus to dental offices operated by Oates or Grinter.

More:Removal of gate and $1 lease to open up downtown Rockford like never before

"A lot of the kids we treat have never been to a dentist before," Oates said.

"What makes it really work is the relationship that we have with the school district. I don't have to guess if the parent is going to show up with their kid or not. Every Tuesday, I know that bus is coming with six or seven kids."

Crusader Clinic, which operates a facility at Auburn High School, also has been instrumental in helping to provide dental care to students from low-income families.

Oates, who saw first-hand early on in his career the need for more dentists to accept public aid patients, said compensation is about .27 cents to .30 cents on the dollar.

"It's a balance between trying to meet the need but not letting public aid take over the majority of my practice," he said.

Roni Sturm, RPS Health Services administrator, said an invaluable service is being provided to more than one-third of the district's 27,328 students. "Of that group," she said, "about 40% are in need of some sort of dental attention."

Chris Green: 815-987-1241; cgreen@rrstar.com; @chrisfgreen

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Local dentist providing in-school care to Rockford students