Charmaine Livingston is crossing her fingers in the hope she doesn’t have another medical problem before January.
The 64-year-old woman from Penn Hills is “retired but not quite.” She stopped working in the past few years and doesn’t have insurance, and she can’t use Medicare until her birthday after the new year.
After she was presented with an opportunity to get a cavity filled at the Mission of Mercy Pittsburgh dental clinic on Friday, one thing caught her eye: “Free.”
“When you don’t have insurance, you can’t afford the healthcare,” Ms. Livingston said.
She was among hundreds of patients who stopped into the clinic in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center on Friday, with hundreds more expected when the event picks back up on Saturday.
Dentists volunteering at the clinic said it played an essential role for those in the community who need help but lack the resources required for regular, quality care.
Lisa MacPhail, a general dentist who first volunteered with the program a few years ago as a student at the University of Pittsburgh, said she came back for her fourth time this year because it felt good to help.
“The need for care is obviously huge, but I was honestly really taken aback by the amount of volunteers and volunteer dentists that were willing to give up a workday and give back,” she said of her first time coming to the clinic.
Some 300 people lined up overnight to get in when the convention center opened its doors at 6 a.m., and there were other opportunities for patients too: Andrew Ferguson, Ms. Livingston’s 39-year-old son, received his COVID-19 vaccination before getting a cavity filled.
Full vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test were required to attend the clinic this year, an important step in keeping the event going after it was canceled amid the pandemic in 2020.
Dr. Richard Celko, the chief dental officer for UPMC Health Plan, was one of the doctors responsible for bringing the Mission of Mercy project to Pittsburgh on a yearly basis.
“[People] are just very appreciative,” Dr. Celko said. “They appreciate the fact that we treat them with respect, that we address their needs, we listen to them. We provide appropriate aftercare.”
Among the procedures available at the clinic were exams, radiographs, cleanings and root canals. Because some patients may be homeless or lack the financial resources to receive ongoing dental care, doctors may also help them with follow-up appointments through Pitt’s dental school or the Catholic Charities Free Health Care Center.
Some of the doctors volunteering at the clinic would even provide ongoing care for patients months after their extractions were completed, Dr. Celko said.
“What we’d like to do is establish dental homes for a lot of these patients,” he said. “To make sure they get continual dental care, to be able to seek treatment when they need it through the year, not just waiting until when they’re in pain.”
That delayed care — potentially exacerbated by job loss, financial struggles and health concerns amid the pandemic — leaves a lot of the patients with no options other than extraction, Dr. Celko said, pointing to the long line for the procedure at Friday’s clinic.
“That’s the thing that we like to do as dentists the least,” he said. “Because we don’t want to take out teeth. We want to save teeth. But that’s the option of last resort is to remove it.”
One of the other dentists who was a major factor in bringing the clinic to Pittsburgh was Dr. Daniel Pituch, the chief of oral and maxillofacial surgery at UPMC Mercy and Shadyside hospitals.
Some of the patients Dr. Pituch spoke to on Friday said they came in because they couldn’t afford treatment weren’t able to see a dentist during the past year, in addition to other concerns.
“They lost their insurance. They lost their jobs,” he said. “Some of them are retired and on fixed income. I’ve taken care of retired police officers who are on fixed income and don’t have dental benefits, and now they’re having all kinds of problems.”
He assisted people ranging from ex-cops to cable installation technicians and unemployed people who are struggling to find a job. “They can’t even go into an interview because they’ve got missing front teeth, or they’ve got decay in their front teeth. They’re self-conscious. They won’t smile.”
A 69-year-old West Deer man, who asked not to be identified, came in because he was transitioning between dental insurance plans and had a loose filling that needed to be repaired.
The doctors went “above and beyond,” he said, and he appreciated the no-questions-asked style of care rather than a sliding pay scale for different incomes.
“Unfortunately, many people need help and are financially just over the limit of getting help like this,” he said.
It comes at a time when many people find themselves in precarious financial situations due to the COVID-19 crisis or job loss, he said. “If I were to go to another clinic, I would have to incur a cost that maybe I could not afford at this time.”
The clinic continues on Saturday on a first-come-first-served basis. Doors open at 6 a.m. and the services are open to adults and children age 2 and older.
Mick Stinelli: mstinelli@post-gazette.com; 412-263-1869; and on Twitter: @MickStinelli
First Published: October 22, 2021, 8:03 p.m.
