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Hurleyville, N Y.-Just 90 miles from Midtown Manhattan, this rural area in the Catskill Mountains was once a vibrant part of the "Borscht Belt," known for the resorts, summer camps and hotels that thrived there from the 1920s to the 1970s. But today, many have closed and the area has found itself to have a largely rural population with limited access to dental care.

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NYSDF Awards Ceremony

 

News : May 2009

Hurleyville, NY - May 21, 2009 – The PRASAD Children's Dental Health Program (PRASAD CDHP) has been honored with the 2009 “Give Kids a Smile Award” by the New York State Dental Foundation (NYSDF.) The award ceremony took place on May 21, at the Sullivan County Government Center, with state, county and local officials in attendance.

Pictured left to right are local dentist, Dr. Gary Berson; PRASAD Children's Dental Health Program’s clinic Administrative Assistant, Ivette Acosta; Program Administrator, Dr. Cecilia Escarra, and Executive Director of the NYS Dental Foundation, Laura Leon.

Each year, the foundation presents the award, and a $5,000 prize, to a community health center or service program that expands education, access and/or capacity for oral health care for children.

A key to PRASAD CDHP’s success is its mobile dental clinic. A certified, New York State Department of Health Article 28 facility, the traveling clinic is well suited to this rural location. PRASAC CDHP can bring comprehensive dental care to students at their schools, thereby removing the obstacles of parents not having transportation or time to take children to the dentist.

NYSDF executive director, Laura Leon said that this year's award also underscores the value of PRASAD CDHP’S relationships with the community, and with policymakers.

PRASAD CDHP collaborates with nine school districts, community colleges, Social Services, Sullivan County Public Health, Head Start, Sullivan County Youth Bureau and New York state officials. Through those alliances, the mobile dental clinic currently serves students as well as pregnant mothers who qualify for the program.

In the last 12 years, this innovative program has served more than 50,000 children at 17 community sites in Sullivan and Ulster counties.

Local dentists, Gary Berson and Swati Desai, nominated PRASAD CDHP for the award. Dr. Berson noted that, "For many families, PRASAD Children's Dental Health Program is the only portal to dental care and education, making the organization a vital force in the community, and one worth sustaining."