'I feel very grateful': Boyle McCauley Health Centre expands dental service

For the last 14 yearsDoug McDonald has been coming to the Boyle McCauley Health Centre dental clinic to get his teeth checked.

McDonald, who is on a fixed income, is one of thousands of people who rely on the clinic foreverything fromteeth cleaning toroot canals.

"They'll take care of you right away," McDonald said. "If you've got problems with your teeth,they'll take you in an emergency and get everything done for you.

"I feel very grateful to have a place like this."

• 'I just can't afford it': Low-income seniors struggle to find dental care, face 2-year wait
• Dental students hold sock drive for the homeless

No one is turned away from the clinic which has been running out of the Boyle McCauley Health Centre since 1989. It provides services for low-income newcomers, immigrants and indigenous people.

"People in general struggle to access affordable dental care," said Cecilia Blasetti, the centre's executive director.

'This is amazing'

6 years ago

Duration 0:43

The newly-expanded Boyle McCauley Health Centre Dental Clinic serves Edmonton's vulnerable residents.

"When you compound that with homelessness, mental illness, substance use issues;all of those thingsreally makeit difficult to just access care in general," Blasetti said.

The new clinic, which opened10 days ago, has expanded from four to eight chairs and is now located in the Renaissance Tower, a fewblocks away from the former location.

'Extractions, fillings, cleanings'

The University of Alberta's School of Dentistry raised $1.5 million to help pay for theexpansion.

The clinicprovidesnotonlyamuch-needed service, butalsoan invaluable training ground for dental hygiene students.

"This really does give our students the opportunity to provide care in the setting and to learn how to work with patients and actually really have a heart for them, so that in the future they'll be able to do this in their practices as well," said dentistry chair Paul Major.

"All of the routine sorts of things: extractions, fillings, cleanings, preventive care, root canals that's all offered here," Major said.

In 2017/18there were 755 emergency visits to the dental clinic, helping reduce the load on hospital emergency rooms. The clinic operates 140 days of the year.