PRESTONSBURG — Big Sandy Community & Technical College celebrated the grand opening of its new state-of-the-art dental facility, the East Kentucky Oral Health Training Center, in a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday.
The center will be the new home for the college’s dental assisting/dental hygiene integrated program certificate, diploma and A.A.S. degree programs, and the community dental health coordinator certificate.
EKOHTC will become a site for central regional dental testing service and a hub for training the region’s oral health professionals (incumbent workers and small businesses) in continuing education, updated technology, telehealth and emerging oral health treatment.
Delta Dental and Workforce Opportunities, a grant initiative for the Appalachian region through the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, funded the creation of EKOHTC.
Dr. Jill Keaton, BSCTC’s program coordinator of dental hygiene/dental assisting stated, “We are proud to serve eastern Kentucky by providing oral healthcare while educating future dental professionals. We are enthusiastic about the positive impact we will have on our region.”
The center will increase the region’s capacity to provide a reliable pipeline of trained oral health professionals to mitigate the oral health disparities in our communities.
“The opening of our new dental clinic signifies the power of partnerships to accomplish milestones. As the community college, we strive to be purveyors of hope for the people of our region; these are the investments we seek,” stated BSCTC President Telly Sellars.
EKOHTC features 20 operatories and the latest technological advances in oral health/dental care. BSCTC is committed to serving 200 incumbent workers through continuing education and workforce training customized for oral health professionals in the region.
Continuing education and workforce training will focus on coronal polishing and radiology certifications for dental assistants, laser debridement, local anesthesia for dental hygienists, telemedicine, and others to support and grow the oral health/dental care workforce in the region.