On Nov. 8, Bering Omega Dental Clinic in Houston celebrated 15 years of service to low-income people living with HIV/AIDS. It is the only clinic in the Southwest that provides a full range of dental services to uninsured and underinsured people with HIV/AIDS.

The clinic is one of six programs provided by Bering Omega Community Services to address the critical health, physical, emotional and spiritual issues faced by underserved and indigent men and women in Harris County and its surrounding area. Last year, the clinic saw 1,940 patients for a total of 19,000 dental visits.

Formed in 1999, Bering Omega is the result of the merging of two veteran organizations, Bering Community Service Foundation and Omega House, an AIDS residential hospice. “We created a dental clinic solely for people with HIV and full-blown AIDS, so they can come and get treatment for oral diseases,” said Laura Valentine, the Bering Omega Community Services development specialist. “The type of specialized practice it takes to provide oral care for someone who is HIV-positive does not exist in large quantity in the existing private practice. We really fill a void in the dental care community. If we weren’t around, this indigent population would not get care,” Valentine said.

In 2001, 64 percent of the clients accessing Bering Omega’s programs and services were minorities, and 26 percent were women. In an effort to become more accessible to the growing numbers of minorities with HIV/AIDS who are in need of dental care, the clinic -- in conjunction with the Winsor AIDS Ministry Foundation -- is in the process of establishing a satellite dental clinic in southwest Houston.

“When we first started, we had two operatories and the church kitchen to work out of. Now, we have nine chairs and a full staff,” said staff dentist Carol Heath. The clinic has six dentists. It also has between 16 and 20 dentists on contract, including several oral hygiene specialists.

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