Press release from Open Door Community Health Centers:

Delta Dental’s Community Care Foundation has awarded a grant of $80,000 to Open Door Community Health Centers to support the expansion of dental services at Burre Dental Center, in Eureka. Remodeling is due for completion in August 2025.

In its award statement, Delta’s Community Care Foundation noted Open Door’s “dedication to providing quality, affordable oral healthcare.” Open Door is committed to investing in oral healthcare services for Humboldt County.

Each year Burre Dental Center in Eureka sees over 7,000 of Open Door’s 12,158 dental patients; about 1,500 of these are emergency dental visits for adults who do not have an established dental provider.

Burre Dental Center’s renovation and expansion will allow for 8,000 more visits each year, is particularly focusing on seniors who have been suffering from a lack of access to oral healthcare services.

Over the next two years, a new program which will visit senior living facilities and resource centers to provide oral health hygiene education, to help seniors improve their oral healthcare and reduce fear of seeking dental care. The program will also provide dental care options and resources for seniors without a dental provider.

“Apart from the extra space and access to care at Burre [Dental Center],” says Tory Starr, Open Door’s CEO, “this funding allows us to expand our Dental Residency Program at last (bringing new dental providers to our community), and it will integrate behavioral health services onsite which we know can be a barrier for patients in accessing dental care.”

The Burre Dental Center expansion adds 6 new dental operatories, bringing it to a total of 22 operatories. The expansion will also allow Open Door to hire two more dentists and train an additional dental resident each year.