Dental clinic for needy youth to relocate and expand

HONESDALE - “This move is a reflection of how much need there is in this community for dental care for young people who may not have the means to see a dentist otherwise,” says Vance Jones, DDS, a fulltime dentist with the Together for Health Dental Clinic. On January 16, the clinic, the only one of its kind in Wayne or Pike County, officially opened in a new site at the Stourbridge Mall, about a half mile from its current location on Park Street in Honesdale. The new location, a former deli, is equipped with six “operatories” or exam rooms—three more than the former Park Street site. “The new site, and additional staff, will help us significantly reduce out wait list,” adds James Hockenbury, Director of Ancillary Services for Wayne Memorial Health System and the overseer for the Together for Health Dental Clinic. He says the clinic’s client base has been growing so much and so fast that the current extended waiting period, particularly to see a dental hygienist, is roughly six to eight weeks. “We are looking to hire another hygienist and cut down the wait time by at least 50 percent.”Hockenbury said. The Together for Health Clinic, launched in 1998 with a state grant, grew out of a Community Needs Assessment commissioned by the Wayne Memorial Community Advisory Board, a group of civic-minded volunteers from across the WMH service area. For more information or appointments, call 570-251-6534.