Alpha Omega Denver Chapter
Members Page
The members' page will be a place to share information about you with other members and let the world know what the members of Denver Alumni Chapter of Alpha Omega are doing. We have a proud heritage of contributions to the community and to the profession. With pride in our fraters we wish to acknowledge these contributions and to honor the recognitions received.
Please help by providing information on your community service, lectures, officer positions in professional organizations, etc. to those listed under Contact Us.
There is also the ability to express your views on the Alpha Omega exchange. It is open to all members of Alpha Omega International. It can be a valuable resource for keeping up to date on the issues that affect you as a practicing dentist and as a Jew. To post to this group, send email to ao-exchange@googlegroups.com.
Service
Kids In Need of DentistryDrs. Paul Bottone, Cliff Litvak and Michael Plous provide services in the KIND program.
Kids In Need of Dentistry: The Oldest Dental Charity in the United States
Back in 1912, a group of Denver dentists recognized a need for affordable dental services among children of low-income miners and railroad workers, and decided to form a non-profit organization aimed at address that need. While much has changed since Kids in Need of Dentistry (KIND) opened its first clinic, its mission has not. Today, KIND continues to provide low-cost quality, comprehensive dental care to children from low-income families. It remains the oldest dental charity in the United States.
As importantly, it is nationally recognized for its efforts to bridge the gap between public assistance and private dentistry. KIND is the first and only access program in the country to earn the endorsement of the American Dental Association and is one of only two dental charities in the country to have been endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry.
Services ranging from examinations and x-rays to emergency, preventive and restorative treatments are offered at three clinics in metropolitan Denver and a Colorado Springs clinic, as well as in private practices of volunteer dental professionals. KIND's services are supported by contributions from foundations, corporations and individuals. Its small staff is supplemented through a network of student and volunteer dental professionals.
Throughout its 94 years of service, KIND has never experienced a decrease in the need for its services; in fact, the need has grown. To address the growing need, it is developing plans to incorporate evidence-based prevention strategies that would reduce the number of children who would need KIND's services in the future. The key elements of the strategy includes:
- Conducting outreach and developing partnerships with hospitals, teen pregnancy program and the WIC program to reach pregnant, disadvantaged mothers and newborn infants about ways to improve oral health for babies.
- Provide community-based training on such matters as diet, the spread of bacteria within families and baby bottle syndrome.
- Offer dental counseling in its clinics to teach oral hygiene at an earlier age.
Dr. Michael Plous participated in COMOM this year with several other members participating in past years.
Colorado Mission of Mercy - Colorado Smile Makers Program Wednesday, September 23, 2009
"The Colorado Mission of Mercy (COMOM) is a dental clinic in which portable dental stations are set up in a large public arena, and dental screenings and services are provided at no charge to those who attend. COMOM combines the donated services of hundreds of dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants and an array of volunteers to provide these free dental clinics."
Colorado Smile Makers Program, 9-12-2009
Hundreds of people lined up the night before for free dental care. The Dentists started arriving at the Adams County Fairground at 4:30 am! I arrived later to help cheer folks up with my jumbo 5 foot long "Toof Brush" ! The 2009 Brighton COMOM joins the dental clinics previously conducted in 2007 in Alamosa and 2008 in Loveland. In 2008, in Loveland, CO, "Nearly 900 volunteers provided 1,411 patients with $1,181,400 in donated dental care in two days."
CFDHDr. Paul Bottone is Past President, Colorado Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped.
NFDH, 1800 15th Street Suite 100, Denver, CO 80202.
The National Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped (NFDH, an affiliate of the American Dental Association), was founded in 1974 to promote access to and delivery of needed dental care for disabled or elderly persons. The Foundation operates three types of direct care programs: 1) preventive dentistry outreach efforts for mentally retarded and other developmentally disabled individuals; 2) Dental Housecall projects which enable dentists to treat homebound persons in residences and nursing homes; and 3) Donated Dental Services (DDS) projects that link volunteer dentists with disabled or elderly people who are indigent and ineligible for public assistance. DDS programs now operate in 34 states with services available in the other 16 states and the District of Columbia.
Offices Held
Dr. Kenneth Versman:
- American Dental Association, 14th District trustee
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Dr. Sheldon Newman:
- Metropolitan Denver Dental Society, Member of Board of Directors (Rocky Mountain Dental Convention, several committee memberships)
- Colorado Dental Association, Task force on Continuing Education, Chairman
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
- American Dental Association, Standards Committee for Dental Products, several subcommittees
- Secretary, Standards Committee on Dental Products, Working Group 1.1, Adhesion
Dr. Paul Glick:
- Metropolitan Denver Dental Society, Member of Board of Directors
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Dr. Brett Kessler:
- Metropolitan Denver Dental Society, Member of Board of Directors
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Dr. Cliff Litvak:
- University of Colorado Denver, School of Dental Medicine, Alumni Association, Board of Directors
- American College of Dentists Colorado Section, Member of Board of Directors
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Dr. Paul Bottone:
- Rocky Mountain Dental Study Club, President
- American College of Dentists, Member of Board of Directors
- Community College of Denver, School of Dental Hygiene, Member of Board of Directors
- Colorado Section of the Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped, Member of Board of Directors Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Steve Weinstein:
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Dan Zeppelin:
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
Jan Buckstein:
- Colorado Dental Association, Delegate from Metropolitan Denver Dental Society
