Improving the Oral Health of the Nation one Hug at a Time
For National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Ready Responder and U.S. Public Health Service commissioned officer, Lieutenant Commander Scott Trapp, providing critically needed dental care to the underserved is “all about the hugs.” This, he readily admits, is what the children who visit his dental clinic in northern Michigan have taught him.
On the eve of his first anniversary with the NHSC, Trapp took a moment to reflect on why he made the leap from his own thriving private practice to start over again in public service. “It was time to set a new challenge for myself…time to truly help improve the lives of those less fortunate,” he said. “I had proven to myself that I could start something from scratch and grow it over 12 years into a million-dollar business. But in doing so, I learned that while it’s easy to make money, it’s much more difficult to make a lasting and positive change in people’s quality of life and health.”
Trapp said he stumbled across the NHSC Web site while searching for a career alternative that would live up to his self-imposed challenge and expectations. Although he once considered working for the U.S. Public Health Service, NHSC’s Ready Responder program piqued his imagination and provided him the substance he needed to act. Trapp ended up serving in Cadillac, Michigan, with Dental Clinics North, a unique partnership of 6 local health departments in a 26-county region of northern Michigan. Under an interagency agreement, Dental Clinics North consolidates administrative costs in a shared system already in place for the overall mandates of the county departments. The clinic provides comprehensive oral health services primarily to Medicaid and uninsured patients on a sliding scale fee structure.
Located in an area with an acute shortage of health care providers, the Cadillac clinic employs 2 dental assistants, 1 dental hygienist, and a receptionist; Trapp is the only dentist. The clinic stresses preventive and restorative care but invariably treats patients with dental emergencies as well. On any given day, 25 to 30 patients pass through the clinic’s doors. Since his arrival, Trapp has initiated several innovative programs, including one involving a dental sealant which, after one year, has increased in use more than threefold. The sealant program has already significantly reduced the rate of tooth decay for children between the ages of 6 and 8. Another program Trapp devised provides brush-on fluoride gel to patients to compensate for the lack of fluoride in the region’s drinking water.
What Trapp enjoys most about his position as a public health service commissioned officer is the broad range of responsibilities and experiences. As an officer, he has received training in areas such as disaster preparedness and has had the opportunity to serve his country by helping prepare the deployment of U.S. Marine forces in Camp LeJeune, North Carolina. “It was an honor and a privilege,” said Trapp. “I was never so proud to be an American as I was returning the salutes of America’s finest.” Moreover, Trapp found that lessons in problem solving learned at Camp LeJeune could be applied directly to his clinic operations. As such, he is in the process of implementing a system of prioritization and triage based on need so that patients with immediate or acute oral health issues will be scheduled before those requiring preventive maintenance.
Trapp also enjoys the positive effects of wearing a military uniform while working—a requirement for all Public Health Service commissioned officers. “When I meet with citizen groups or work with committees, they look to me for leadership, and I am glad to be able to give it.” Veryser believes leadership is a key component that Trapp brings to the Dental Clinics North system—a quality Veryser characterizes as “infectious mission-driven enthusiasm.” Veryser relies on Trapp’s combination of experience, enthusiasm, and collegial manner for mentoring junior dentists as they begin their careers with Dental Clinic North. In fact, Trapp will soon help transition the system’s newest dentist, an NHSC Loan Repayor, into a clinic in Manistee, Michigan.
In the next year, Trapp’s achievements will be documented—from significantly reducing oral disease and tooth decay to re-establishing a hospital-based practice for challenged and pre-cooperative patients to cutting the time it takes to complete treatment plans in half. Despite his achievements, however, Trapp is quick to draw any reflections back to the core focus of his work—his patients. He measures his own success against whether or not he was able to have an impact on the health of each one. And judging from all the hugs he receives, it’s clear that he has left an indelible mark on the underserved in northern Michigan.
Learn about other NHSC success stories.
