Adults with Psychiatric Disabilities Benefit from GSDM Outreach

Adults with Psychiatric Disabilities Benefit from GSDM Outreach
(l-r) Olga Spival (pre-dental), Marium Qureshi AS 15, and Sai Ramani Krishna Kumar AS 15

Earlier this year, volunteers from BU’s Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) provided services to adults with psychiatric disabilities at the Center Club Boston, a program of Bay Cove Human Services. Led by Oral Health Promotion Director Kathy Lituri and in collaboration with the GSDM student chapter of the American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD), Sai Ramani Krishna Kumar AS 15, Marium Qureshi AS 15, and Olga Spival (pre-dental) participated in a wellness fair held at the club.

Center Club is a five-day-a-week program for people with psychiatric disabilities. The program combines employment, housing, and education services with social activities, wellness initiatives, and advocacy using a holistic approach and principles of self-help, peer support and empowerment.

The aim of the wellness fair was to increase health awareness through education and prevention. Approximately 250 clients and staff of Bay Cove Human Services attended. Attendees were offered basic health screenings, blood pressure and glucose checks, as well as a variety of informational activities designed to raise awareness of the many health-related programs, services, and providers located in the surrounding community. The GSDM volunteers offered oral health screenings, referrals, and education.

Said Kathy Lituri, “This was an excellent opportunity for students to participate in a community-based event, share their expertise as oral health professionals, and to learn more about the oral health issues that affect adults and their families who live with mental illness, addiction disorders, or developmental disabilities.”

Submitted by GSDM Communications.

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